Deadline: August 4, 2020 at 6:30 PM
Venue: The Rose Bowl, Southampton
Pitch Report
The pitch isn’t as lethal as the scorecards of the first two matches suggest. Ireland played outrageous shots and invited their downfall. The same has been the case with England, but their middle and lower orders are skilled and resilient enough to compensate for the blunders of their top order.
If England bat first, expect a big total. Otherwise, a repeat telecast is on the cards.
Weather Report
The weather will be slightly cloudy but good enough for little to no interruptions.
Power Players
Jonny Bairstow made amends in the second ODI with a fabulous innings of 82 off 41 including 14 fours and 2 sixes. His scores at the venue read 141*, 51, 45, 2, and 82.
Curtis Campher has had a dream start to his international career, scoring consecutive fifties and taking 3 wickets. On both occasions, Ireland’s five wickets fell for cheap scores and it was Curtis who held the fort with the lower order.
David Willey has accumulated the most fantasy points in the series thus far. He has been exceptional not only with the ball (7 wickets) but also has been more than handy with the bat. Had it not been for his unbeaten 46 on Saturday at No. 8, England would have stared down the barrel.
Smart Picks
Adil Rashid and Saqib Mahmood have taken 4 wickets each. While Rashid has been catching the Irishmen in trance with his wrist-spin, Mahmood has been rocking them with raw pace.
Joshua Little picked the crucial wickets of Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, and Moeen Ali and that too in a span of six deliveries.
Andy McBrine deserves a promotion in the batting order. Scores of 40 and 24 suggest that he is better than a No. 9 batsman – he, at least, has performed far better than their mainstay batsmen.
Sam Billings has scored the bulk of the runs, not only rescuing England in both matches but also making sure he remains unbeaten. He has scored 113 runs with a strike rate of 98 and might as well bat higher up in the final encounter.
Neither of Paul Stirling, Eoin Morgan, and Kevin O’Brien has lived up to the expectations. However, forms and fortune change in no time.
Probable XIs
England: Paul Stirling, Gareth Delany, Andy Balbirnie (c), Harry Tector, Kevin O’Brien, Lorcan Tucker (wk), Curtis Campher, Simi Singh, Andy McBrine, Craig Young, Joshua Littler
Ireland: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow (wk), James Vince, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, David Willey, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley, Saqib Mahmood
