T20 World Cup: Holders England eye winning start against Scotland | Cricket News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Rain prevented them from getting the best preparation possible, so the reigning champions England will need to get their act together quickly when they play Scotland in their opening match on Tuesday at Bridgetown in Barbados.
Phil Salt will try to carry on with his scorching form from the Indian Premier League, even as the return of pacer Jofra Archer gives the English bowling attack more potency.
England will go into the tournament as one of the top favorites to win the title for a historic third time, although rain derailed their previous four-match T20I series against Pakistan at home.
At the Kensington Oval, which provided a two-paced wicket for the Namibia-Oman game on Sunday evening, the Jos Buttler-led England will be the overwhelming favorites to win in what will be their first-ever encounter against the Scots in the shortest format.
Group B opponents Australia, Namibia, and Oman are England’s other opponents in addition to Scotland.
Teams must place in the top two in their group in order to advance to the Super Eight stage.
England’s journey in white-ball cricket hasn’t been easy since defeating Pakistan by five wickets in the 2022 T20 World Cup final in Melbourne.
Buttler’s team had a terrible campaign in the ODI World Cup in India, finishing eighth after winning three and losing six of their nine matches-including a heartbreaking loss to Afghanistan-a year after their triumph in Australia.
They lost against West Indies in both the 50-over and 20-over formats, which extended their bad streak in the white-ball game.
England won the latest rain-soaked rubber against Pakistan 2-0, making up some of the ground they had lost.
With their attention now on their opening match against Scotland, England is excited to play at the Kensington Oval, where they won their first-ever T20 World Cup in 2010 under Paul Collingwood’s captaincy, defeating Australia by seven wickets in the championship match.
Since that victory 14 years ago, England has emerged as a major force in limited overs cricket, winning the 2019 ODI World Cup two years prior to their Down Under triumph.
Scotland, who are participating in their third consecutive T20 World Cup, may not be as strong as their more well-favored opponents, but they still have high expectations after winning the European qualifications.
Scotland finished top of the qualifying standings after winning all six of their games, securing a trip to the West Indies and the USA for the main competition.
Teams (from):
England: Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonathan Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Tom Hartley, Will Jacks, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, Mark Wood
Scotland: Richie Berrington (c), Matthew Cross, Brad Currie, Chris Greaves, Oli Hairs, Jack Jarvis, Michael Jones, Michael Leask, Brandon McMullen, George Munsey, Safyaan Sharif, Chris Sole, Charlie Tear, Mark Watt, Brad Wheal
Match starts at 8pm IST.
Afghanistan start favourites against Uganda
Afghanistan will be the clear favorites against Uganda in the other game of the day at the Providence in Guyana. This is the Africans’ first time participating in the competition.
Afghanistan will undoubtedly be encouraged by their performance in the previous ICC competition, as they defeated teams like England, South Africa, and Pakistan in the ODI World Cup in India last year.
Teams:
Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Ibrahim Zadran, Azmatullah Omarzai, Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Ishaq, Mohammad Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Karim Janat, Rashid Khan (c), Nangyal Kharoti, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Fareed Ahmad Malik
Uganda: Brian Masaba (c), Simon Ssesazi, Roger Mukasa, Cosmas Kyewuta, Dinesh Nakrani, Fred Achelam, Kenneth Waiswa, Alpesh Ramjani, Frank Nsubuga, Henry Ssenyondo, Bilal Hassun, Robinson Obuya, Riazat Ali Shah (vc), Juma Miyaji, Ronak Patel
Match starts at 6am IST
(With PTI inputs)