Former India cricketer Dinesh Karthik has spoken about West Indies’ chances for the T20 World Cup 2024. He said that he would be very disappointed if the Rovman Powell-led team did not reach the semi-finals of the tournament.
The West Indies cricket team looks likeOne of the big favorites to win the current edition of the tournament. Under the leadership of Rovman Powell, they have seemed quite strong in recent months.
In the build-up to the tournament, the West Indies played a magnificent brand of cricket, beating India and England in the T20I series. The kind of firepower they have in their team makes them a dominant team in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
West Indies have some big names in the team and it is fair to say that if they play to their potential, no one will be able to stop them from winning another T20 World Cup and etching their name in the record books.
Dinesh Karthik also expressed his confidence in the West Indies for the T20 World Cup 2024. He believes the hosts have all bases covered and are dominating at home. He added that they will be dangerous even on slow pitches. Speaking to Cricbuzz, he stated:
“They have been the best team among those over 16 and 20 years old throughout the cycle, a very, very powerful team. The only thing that T20 cricket uses at the moment when it comes to batting is power. The reason KKR won, you know, is simply the power during the innings until 8, 9 and that’s pretty much what West Indies have now.
“And as those stats say, they have been very dominant at home, beating England in a very close five-match series and playing some solid cricket. For me, I would be very disappointed if they didn’t make it to the semi-final. I think it is a team that should get there.
“They have a solid team, most of the bases covered, all they do is bowl lightly, especially fast bowling. If they play on good fields, they will be discovered. But if they play on slow or spinning pitches, West Indies have a lot of chances.”
When they bat second, they are incredibly good – Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik further spoke about the conditions in the West Indies and noted that the teams have to consider the wind. He spoke about the challenges of playing in the wind and added that the hosts would want to chase in many games because they bat well in the second innings. He added:
“Unlike other parts of the world, the biggest challenge when playing in the West Indies is the wind. You have to be very aware of the wind when you make a shot, and which side of the field you want to hit. As a bowler, you try it in India, many times in IPL, you try it when they play on the side pitches, one side of the boundary is less.
“In this, in the West Indies, it definitely becomes the wind. So don’t try to hit into the wind. As a bowler, you make them hit into the wind. So those are the biggest challenges. The courses are not as consistent as those played in other parts of the world. It is a little slow.
“It might be sticky. You have to understand that infrastructure is not its strong point in the Caribbean. So I just hope that this World Cup is much better. But consistently over a period of time, they haven’t been the best. And the West Indies will be praying to win as many pitches as possible because when they bat second, they are incredibly good.”
The West Indies started their ICC T20 World Cup 2024 campaign on a high. They defeated Papua New Guinea by 5 wickets to get their first win in the tournament.