England kick off their ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against Scotland at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Tuesday, June 4. England have had probably the best preparation for the T20 World Cup as their players had a good hit out in the IPL and then were able to assemble for the T20 series against Pakistan and they won it 2-0 without much competition from the visitors. The defending champions look set to defend their crown but will be in the group of death in Super 8s, once they get through the first round.
Scotland, on the other hand, toppled the West Indies in the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia but failed to get through the first round. With teams like Oman and Namibia in the group, Scotland will be eyeing for more than just a couple of wins but England and Australia will be tough nuts to crack.
Kensington Oval, Bridgetown in Barbados pitch report
The first game saw 109 play 109, which might not reflect the true nature of the wicket at the Kensington Oval, which is scheduled to host the final of the tournament. However, the game did reflect the historical nature of the surface, of being not being a belter. There was enough swing early for the faster bowlers and the spinners too did get some help both for Namibia and Oman. Average batting first score at this venue is 155, which suggests that 170-175 could be a decent score even if not defendable.
This history suggests that batting first is a good option with 16 wins out of 25 matches with only seven times team chasing getting over the line. Oman almost proved it right before the match went into super over and David Wiese finished it off for Namibia. For Associate nations especially, batting first might not be a bad option given that they can go out and play without any pressure of scoreboard and would have something to challenge a stronger outfit.
Scotland in the past have shown that they have enough experience in the tank but will have to be at the A game against the defending champions England.
