Even missing Gayle and Russell this batting lineup is formidable, don’t think most teams can boast the likes of Powell and Allen at 6-7. I’m once again backing Powell to have a big series as long as he gets a chance, the NZ spinners aren’t exactly big turners of the ball (Santner) or quick in the air ( Sodhi) so he shouldn’t struggle that much, I’d say use him at 4 to separate Hetmyer and Pooran who are detrimental against spin and Powell will counter the pace.
The bowling is going to struggle, there’s no way around it, if Narine isn’t going to be available for the World Cup the frontline spinner is going to be Walsh who hasn’t had the greatest of times since 2019 CPL so he probably has to play all 3 games as well as Paul who’s going to be the designated death bowler. The problem both of them have as bowlers is that once pressure is applied to them they tend to relent under it, Pollard needs to back them especially Paul who has a lot of promise as a whole package.
As always, fully in agreement with your analysis. Expecting Powell to do well contrary to people's expectations after that poor CPL. I like the idea of using him to foil Hetmyer and Pooran, but in that case I'm assuming you push Hetmyer down because he's a more natural hitter of pace?
Yes, the bowling is in a development phase so I'm not expecting miracles. Pollard has this tendency to bowl himself under pressure which is acceptable because he feels in control and is a means of taking responsibility. That being said, it does limit the overs Walsh or Paul bowl and they're not going to improve unless they bowl more. Keen to see how Pollard manages things this time around.
Not a fan of Hetty batting lower than 3 tbh but I take your point in that you probably want Pooran to bat as much overs after the powerplay as possible seeing as he’s the most form batsman right now plus the chaos he brings to the table in the middle overs. I wonder if they will be working on shuffling the order and trying to master each batsman’s entry point, you ideally want Hetmyer in early to build and attack spin and Pooran to take down the weak overs in the middle and Powell-Pollard to go after the pace.
Yeah Pollard sneaking in some overs is why I’d ideally go with 4 frontline bowlers and then trying to find 4 overs between Polly, Allen and Powell. But I’ll be completely honest I have no faith in Walsh, I still think that 2019 season is an outlier but I would love to be proven wrong
I think that is fair, yes, it is a matter of mastering entry points - huge fan of that. I don't mind reserving Powell for post 15th over knowing he will only face pace then. Hetty-Pooran-Pollard are dynamic enough for that. But overall, I think it can't go wrong either way as long as each of them they play to their matchups.
Re: Walsh Jr, his control is a matter of concern but given he's the only wristspinner around, doesn't hurt giving him a long rope (the fingerspinning options are equally inexperienced). Would be nice if Pollard shows more faith in him, but the way he smashes him in CPL, I can see why there's the lack of trust!
Even missing Gayle and Russell this batting lineup is formidable, don’t think most teams can boast the likes of Powell and Allen at 6-7. I’m once again backing Powell to have a big series as long as he gets a chance, the NZ spinners aren’t exactly big turners of the ball (Santner) or quick in the air ( Sodhi) so he shouldn’t struggle that much, I’d say use him at 4 to separate Hetmyer and Pooran who are detrimental against spin and Powell will counter the pace.
The bowling is going to struggle, there’s no way around it, if Narine isn’t going to be available for the World Cup the frontline spinner is going to be Walsh who hasn’t had the greatest of times since 2019 CPL so he probably has to play all 3 games as well as Paul who’s going to be the designated death bowler. The problem both of them have as bowlers is that once pressure is applied to them they tend to relent under it, Pollard needs to back them especially Paul who has a lot of promise as a whole package.
Hi, thanks for sharing your thoughts.
As always, fully in agreement with your analysis. Expecting Powell to do well contrary to people's expectations after that poor CPL. I like the idea of using him to foil Hetmyer and Pooran, but in that case I'm assuming you push Hetmyer down because he's a more natural hitter of pace?
Yes, the bowling is in a development phase so I'm not expecting miracles. Pollard has this tendency to bowl himself under pressure which is acceptable because he feels in control and is a means of taking responsibility. That being said, it does limit the overs Walsh or Paul bowl and they're not going to improve unless they bowl more. Keen to see how Pollard manages things this time around.
Not a fan of Hetty batting lower than 3 tbh but I take your point in that you probably want Pooran to bat as much overs after the powerplay as possible seeing as he’s the most form batsman right now plus the chaos he brings to the table in the middle overs. I wonder if they will be working on shuffling the order and trying to master each batsman’s entry point, you ideally want Hetmyer in early to build and attack spin and Pooran to take down the weak overs in the middle and Powell-Pollard to go after the pace.
Yeah Pollard sneaking in some overs is why I’d ideally go with 4 frontline bowlers and then trying to find 4 overs between Polly, Allen and Powell. But I’ll be completely honest I have no faith in Walsh, I still think that 2019 season is an outlier but I would love to be proven wrong
I think that is fair, yes, it is a matter of mastering entry points - huge fan of that. I don't mind reserving Powell for post 15th over knowing he will only face pace then. Hetty-Pooran-Pollard are dynamic enough for that. But overall, I think it can't go wrong either way as long as each of them they play to their matchups.
Re: Walsh Jr, his control is a matter of concern but given he's the only wristspinner around, doesn't hurt giving him a long rope (the fingerspinning options are equally inexperienced). Would be nice if Pollard shows more faith in him, but the way he smashes him in CPL, I can see why there's the lack of trust!
Powell failed