Sri Lanka vs West Indies Prediction: Who will win today's T20 World Cup 2021 match?
West Indies and Sri Lanka have split the last three T20 World Cup trophies among themselves, but their performances in this edition of the competition have betrayed the same.
Placed in a difficult Group 1 alongside England, South Africa, Australia and Bangladesh, both teams have struggled to deliver on the slow UAE pitches. While West Indies are clinging on to their final straw of surviving in the T20 World Cup, South Africa's hammering of Bangladesh two days ago eliminated not only the Tigers but Sri Lanka as well.
West Indies haven't been able to recover from their nightmare performance against England, where they were bowled out for just 55. A disastrous knock from Lendl Simmons then cost them the game against South Africa, before they showed immense character against Bangladesh but only barely managed to beat them.
Sri Lanka started their T20 World Cup campaign in contrasting fashion to West Indies, comfortably winning their opening game against Bangladesh. But their shortcomings were exposed in their subsequent clashes against Australia, South Africa and England, with only the Proteas game proving to be close.
While West Indies will want to keep their hopes of becoming the first team to win three T20 World Cup titles alive, Sri Lanka will only have pride to play for. In fact, the Islanders may even have vengeance on their minds for the 2012 T20 World Cup final, which saw West Indies beat them by 36 runs, although very few players are still part of the national setup.
T20 World Cup 2021: Hasaranga threat looms large over fearsome West Indies batting lineup
Sri Lanka have lost three of their four matches in the T20 World Cup, but Wanindu Hasaranga is running away with the Player of the Tournament award. Does that not tell you just how incredible the all-rounder has been?
Hasaranga has carried the Sri Lankan bowling attack, always bowling in the tough stages of the innings and coming out on top in his most challenging battles. Sending down an assortment of googlies, flippers and leggies, the 24-year-old has been unplayable. Add his explosive batting and you have the complete package.
West Indies, who were first picked apart by Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid and have struggled against spin since, will be wary of the threat Hasaranga and his partner Maheesh Theekshana possess. Dushmantha Chameera and Lahiru Kumara can crank up the pace as well, and the Caribbean side's big hitters might continue to struggle against a well-rounded Sri Lankan bowling attack.
But can Sri Lanka's batting step up and support their bowling? Inconsistency has plagued the Lankan batters throughout the last few years, and the T20 World Cup has been no different.
Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Pathum Nissanka have shown promise, but barring the young trio, no one has come up with notable performances. Avishka Fernando is bound to be dropped after a disastrous run of form, while Kusal Perera and Dasun Shanaka have failed to lead from the front.
It isn't impossible to envision Sri Lanka putting a leash on the West Indies batters and then chasing a sub-par total down. If the toss goes in their favor, they might even be the slight favorites for this game.
However, Kieron Pollard's men have a plethora of match-winners, all of whom are due a game-changing display. With their T20 World Cup campaign on the line, the defending champions can be backed to survive the Sri Lankan test and continue their winning momentum.
Prediction: West Indies to win Match 35 of the T20 World Cup