Match Preview: Botanical Gardens Rangers vs La Soufriere Hikers – 16th Match VPL 5
Hikers are being met with some ferocious challenges this season and it seems as if everyone is out to beat them. Whatever total they put on the board, teams have been able to get close to it, if they didn’t hunt it down. They tried chasing in their last game but they lost so it will be interesting to see what they do should they win the toss for this match. When they were bowling, they went back to what worked for them in previous editions, spin bowling the majority of the overs at the top and it did work. Seamers have been preferred to the back end but Jonathan Carter, a military medium pacer at best, has been quite expensive at the death and has shown to be a kink in their armoury. While one of the openers have been flourishing in matches, the middle order of the batting has been absent in the past two games but it’s not often you catch Hikers batting off guard in three consecutive matches. Desron Maloney is an astute captain, he rarely makes the same mistake over and over, so you can be assured that something different will happen in their weaker areas this match.
Rangers have won the last three games, some convincingly and some not so much. Therefore, they still have to remain grounded and play good Cricket. Their top order seems sorted, with Fletcher and Cottoy getting them good starts and Roshon Primus has been hitting the ball as hard as anyone. Their other batsmen have not got much chances so far and usually, in crunch games, those batsmen tend to be the ones that can make a difference. Ravendra Persaud and Kenneth Dember has been the best bowlers for Rangers, while the others are not in the best of form. Against a team like Hikers, that can be a recipe for disaster. Rangers is loaded with experience and they have found a way to win games from being in awkward positions.
Form Guide
Botanical Gardens Rangers: W W W
La Soufriere Hikers: L W W
Weather
The weather forecast for this match is good with very little chance of rain. Whatever rain that maybe lingering about will be brief.
Pitch Conditions
The same strip that was used for day 7 will be used for this match, which had good even bounce.
Probable XI
Botanical Gardens Rangers: Kesrick Williams, Andre Fletcher, Keron Cottoy, Wayne Harper, Ravendra Persaud, Kenneth Dember, Roneil Jeffrey, Roshon Primus, Jerron John, Tijourn Pope/Jarrell Edwards, Atticus Browne
La Soufriere Hikers: Desron Maloney, Jonathan Carter, Dillon Douglas, Othneil Lewis, Jaheil Walters, Andrew Thomas, Kirton Lavia, Urnel Thomas, Ojay Matthews, Rayan Williams, Larry Edward