International Cricket: West Indies vs. Australia 7/12/21 T20 Cricket Prediction

Australia’s tour of the West Indies resumes on Monday July 12^th, 2021 at 7:30PM EST with the third match of this truly exciting 5-match T20 series being played at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in Gros Islet, St. Lucia. 

The West Indies steamrolled the Australians with both bat and ball to now lead the series 2-0. Australia would’ve been expecting to get a win under their belt in Saturday night’s game after botching their chances in the first game through a shocking batting collapse. Are we looking at a series win tomorrow for the home side or will the visitors find their touch and win to close the gap in the series?

The West Indies were yet again without their captain, Kieron Pollard  and Evin Lewis along with Obed McCoy were rested which shocked cricketing fans of the Windies especially so early in the series. Nevertheless, the Windies were dominant with the bat, a statement heard very far and few between. Shimron Hetmyer with 61 and Dwayne Bravo who was promoted to 5, scored 47 not out in a 4^th wicket partnership of 103 that was much needed. Lendl Simmons scored 31 at the top while the ever present Andre Russell blasted 24 off just 8 deliveries. Many will be asking if Chris Gayle still has any juice left in the tank as he has yet to makehis presence in this series and if he is hoping to make the T20 World Cup squad, he will need to make significant contributions. On the bowling front, Hayden Walsh has proved he should not be left out of any side after taking 3 wickets in his 4 overs, a similar performance he showed in the first encounter. Sheldon Cottrell returned to the side and took 2 wickets; Fidel Edwards took a wicket as well but suffered an injury just as he was finding his rhythm. West Indies will be looking to seal the series win come tomorrow and with a well-balanced side of youth and experience, you can say their chances of that are quite high at this point.

What can I say about Australia right now? Clearly they are missing the experience of Steve Smith, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stonis in the batting department. The guys mentioned can shape, change and win games for you but the way this Australia setup is currently constructed, I cannot find one game winner amongst them outside of Mitchell Marsh who has scored back-to-back fifties. Aaron Finch, Australia’s captain, has to step up with the bat and rally his troops with the ball through all 40 overs, Australia have shown glimpses of assertation and poise but have consistently lost their way, especially when chasing down totals. If they happen to win the toss in the next match which that have done twice so far in this series, they may want to change their tactics and bat first and see if they can post a score that can give them an advantage in the game. They need to find a winning formula and soon if not, this series will be over for them come tomorrow night.

Mentally Australia do not seem to be there, West Indies have found different ways with different starting XIs to win. This series is far from over and with a lot of Cricket left to play, you can expect a highly intensified match. All to play for in Australia’s point of view but you can book it, West Indies will win tomorrow’s game and take an unassailable 3-0 lead.