Fantasy 11 Prediction, teams, captain, toss and venue analysis – CPL 2024: Barbuda Falcons vs Amazon Warriors

By HT Sports

Antigua and Barbuda Falcons will clash with defending champions, Guyana Amazon Warriors in Match 2 of the 2024 CPL at North Sound in Antigua on Saturday. It will be the second successive encounter for Antigua at their home venue at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound. The Falcons will be led by Brandon King while Imran Tahir will captain the Warriors.

NOTE: All stats updated till start of CPL 2024

LAST 5 MATCHES

FALCONS: N/A

WARRIORS: W W L W W

THE LIKELY PLAYING XIs FOR BARBUDA FALCONS AND AMAZON WARRIORS

BARBUDA FALCONS likely XI

Batters: Fakhar Zaman, Brandon King

Allrounders: Imad Wasim, Shamar Springer, Chris Green

Wicketkeeper: Sam Billings, Jewel Andrew

Bowlers: Mohammed Amir, Fabian Allen, Hayden Walsh, Kelvin Pittman

AMAZON WARRIORS likely XI

Batters: Saim Ayub, Shimron Hetmyer

Allrounders: Romario Shepherd, Keemo Paul, Dwaine Pretorius

Wicketkeeper: Azam Khan, Shai Hope

Bowlers: Imran Tahir, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Kevin Sinclair

Statistical Performance (Falcons)

1. IMAD WASIM

Imad Wasim was the third-highest run-getter last season with an aggregate of 313 runs while also bagging 14 wickets in the tournament.

IMAD WASIM IN CPL

MATCHES - 54

RUNS - 625

STRIKE RATE – 126.5

WICKETS - 61

ECONOMY - 6.2

2. CHRIS GREEN

Chris Green had a great season with the ball in 2023 bagging 15 wickets in 11 matches at a strike rate of 16.8.

CHRIS GREEN IN CPL

INNINGS - 67

WICKETS - 60

STRIKE RATE – 23.7

ECONOMY RATE – 6.39

AVERAGE – 25.25

Players Who Can Make a Difference (Falcons)

1. MOHAMMAD AMIR

Mohammad Amir was the joint third-highest wicket-taker last season with 16 dismissals at a strike rate of 12 and economy of 6.87. He has an excellent record in the CPL and has picked 43 wickets in 28 innings at a strike rate of 13.27!

2. BRANDON KING

Brandon King scored 288 runs in 10 innings last season at a strike rate of 145.5 including three fifties and will be vital for the Falcons this year.

Statistical Performance (Warriors)

1. SHAI HOPE

Shai Hope was in red-hot form in the T20I series against South Africa and was the leading run-getter in CPL 2023 with an aggregate of 481 runs at a strike rate of 140.2.

SHAI HOPE IN CPL

INNINGS - 54

RUNS - 1371

AVERAGE – 27.97

STRIKE RATE – 125.77

50s/100s – 7/1

2. SAIM AYUB

Saim Ayub was the other star with the bat for the Warriors last season and hammered 478 runs at a strike rate of 142.3. He played a pivotal role in taking Warriors to their maiden title.

SAIM AYUB IN CPL

INNINGS - 13

RUNS - 478

AVERAGE - 43.45

STRIKE RATE - 142.26

50/100 - 4/0

Players Who Can Make a Difference (Warriors)

1. IMRAN TAHIR

Skipper Imran Tahir is a T20 legend and has a fine record in the CPL with 91 dismissals in just 66 innings. He has also been phenomenally restrictive with an economy rate of just 6.25.

2. DWAINE PRETORIUS

Dwaine Pretorius was in magnificent form with the ball for the Warriors last season bagging 20 wickets in just 12 innings at a strike rate of 13 and economy of 7.1.

Venue and Pitch

Sir Vivian Richards Stadium at North Sound, Antigua has hosted only six matches in the Caribbean Premier League and the team chasing has won 5 of these encounters. Still, interestingly, the captain who has won the toss has elected to bat first on four occasions. The average first innings score in CPL at this venue is 144 and in the second innings it is 128. The highest score in the CPL at this venue is 179 and the lowest score is 96. The toss win to match win percentage is 50%.

The pitch has been conducive to fast bowling with the pacers accounting for 66% of the wickets at the venue at an average of 25 and economy rate of 7.6. The spinners have an average of 35.2 and an economy rate of 6.9 at North Sound.

MATCH PREDICTION

It is going to be a tough contest but the Warriors just have the edge given their stronger batting unit and the presence of high quality all-rounders. The Warriors have a 55% chance of victory.

Fantasy XI

Our fantasy XI has Shai Hope and Jewel Andrew as the wicket-keeper batters and the main batting line-up will include Fakhar Zaman, Brandon King and Saim Ayub. The all-rounders will be Romario Shepherd, Imad Wasim and Chris Green. The bowlers will be Imran Tahir, Shamar Joseph and Mohammad Amir. The captain is Amir while the vice-captain is Shepherd.

The reserve batter is Shimron Hetmyer, all-rounder is Keemo Paul and the bowler is Fabian Allen.

Fantasy XI:

Wicketkeeper: Shai Hope, Jewel Andrew

Batters: Fakhar Zaman, Brandon King, Saim Ayub

Allrounders: Romario Shepherd (VC), Imad Wasim, Chris Green

Bowlers: Imran Tahir, Mohammad Amir (C), Shamar Joseph

BACKUP PLAYERS:

BATTER – Shimron Hetmyer

BOWLER – Fabian Allen

ALL-ROUNDER – Keemo Paul

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