Dates and Venues Confirmed for England’s Tour of the West Indies
In recent years, the West Indies cricket team has frequently hosted games in Florida, bringing their Caribbean flair to new followers in the Sunshine State. With travel plans likely to be affected at the moment, plans to head back to the US have been put on hold for now but the team has confirmed a busy schedule for the first part of 2022.
England will be the visitors next year for five T20 internationals and three tests. It’s the first time that a five-match T20 series has been contested between the two sides who played out that memorable game at the 2016 World Cup.
Schedule Confirmed
England’s tourists will arrive in the Caribbean in the New Year with all five T20 matches taking place in January. The first game is set to take place on the 22nd of that month, followed by games on the 23rd, 26th, 29th and 30th.
In such a tight schedule, there is little scope for the two teams to travel and that’s why all five matches will be played in Barbados.
Once the T20 Series is concluded, England will send out a fresh squad to contest the three test matches that follow. These games are split across the islands and the first test gets underway at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground in Antigua on March 8th.
It’s back to Barbados for the second test which starts on March 16th and the tour concludes at the National Cricket Stadium in Grenada with the third game which begins on March 24th.
It’s a busy schedule but what can we expect from those eight matches?
The Teams Ranked
West Indies have traditionally been strong in limited overs cricket and they remain the only side to have won the T20 World Cup on two occasions. Despite that, Kieron Pollard’s men exited the 2021 global tournament at the group stage while England progressed to the semifinals.
For those reasons, we should expect England to start as narrow favourites when the cricket betting markets for the T20 series are released. Sbo.net is one of the best websites to visit for these games as they will have a full set of odds for both the T20 and the test matches and those prices will update as each series progresses.
Visitors can also read up on opinion pieces and breaking news articles relating to the West Indies v England games and to cricket in general. If they want to take things further, the panel of recommended sportsbooks attached to sbo.net are all accepting new registrations and there are generous welcome promos in many places,
Moving forward, a choice of funding options and the potential to assess other markets are among additional advantages. It’s the site to follow but who will gain the edge in the tests and the T20is?
Verdict
The tables have been turned and England are now in the ascendancy in terms of limited overs cricket. They are the ODI world champions and have just gone deep into the tournament at the 2021 T20 World Cup.
With powerful hitters such as Jos Buttler, Jason Roy and Eoin Morgan in their lineup, England continue to excel in the shortest format of the game.
The West Indies have power hitters of their own with Kieron Pollard and Andre Russell joined by the likes of Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran. Strength in depth is the main issue and England are expected to come through.
The three-match test series between the two teams could be much closer. England are struggling in red ball cricket and are likely to have a tough time in the Ashes series which precedes the West Indies tour. If Joe Root’s men suffer a heavy defeat in Australia, it could be a struggle to lift themselves in the Caribbean and this is where the Windies can level up the score.
Whatever the results may be, this promises to be a great period of cricket between two of the giants of the game. West Indies and England are known for their attacking, entertaining play and cricket fans around the world can look forward to two thrilling series in 2022.