The three ODI wins came against West Indies with the final victory by seven wickets at The Oval on Wednesday. Now the same two teams switch to T20 and begin another three-game series on Friday with the first match at the Riverside Ground, Chester-le-Street.
Neither side has any great form in this format to shout about, England losing five of their last six T20Is, whereas West Indies can outdo that poor sequence with eight defeats from their last ten (W1, NR1) in the shortest format!
Why England can win
It’s certainly fair to say that Harry Brook’s full-time era as England’s white ball skipper has started well with the 26-year-old leading his side to victories by 238 runs, three wickets and seven wickets.
The captaincy has also not seemed to be a burden with the right-hander averaging 65.50 and striking at 111.96 across the three games, both an increase on his ODI career stats.
For the shorter format, England are expected to welcome back Liam Dawson for his first international cap since November 2022 as the team looks to fill the left-arm spin option.
Phil Salt is also expected to come back into the side after winning the Indian Premier League with Royal Challengers Bengaluru and enjoying a 400+ run campaign for the second successive season.
Adil Rashid finished as the leading wicket taker in the ODI series with nine dismissals and he will be targeting more misery for West Indies who have lost four out of six games (W1, NR1) since the start of this tour of Ireland and the UK.
Why West Indies can win
Remarkably, the last 20 T20Is between England and West Indies have taken place outside of England with the last time the sides met in this format in this country back in 2017!
But the omens are strong for West Indies as it was the ‘Men in Maroon’ who came out on top that September evening, winning by 21 runs in Chester-le-Street.
According to the ICC rankings, this format is the one which West Indies are the most competitive in and they will be keen to live up to such a reputation in this opener.
If they are to do so then they will need Alzarri Joseph, who was their leading wicket-taker in the ODIs, to continue his form in T20Is where he enjoys a strike-rate of 15.5.
Former captain Rovman Powell, who finished as West Indies’ leading run-scorer in their last T20I series against England, joins the group and his strength at the end of the innings could be crucial to a revival for the tourists.
Reinforcements have also arrived in the shape of bowling all-rounder Romario Shepherd who played his part in RCB’s IPL triumph and former skipper Jason Holder who is set for his first T20I since February last year.
Venue and conditions
The last two domestic T20s at this venue were won by the team fielding first, as was the last T20I at the Riverside Ground, but overall in this format in internationals it is level pegging at 2-2 for teams batting and bowling first at this venue!
Although we are still yet to see a team total of 200 here, England did score at 10.21 runs per over in their successful chase of 140 in 2023 so going beyond the highest total of 195/5 should not be ruled out.
This is the furthest north international venue in England and, although it will be cloudy throughout, the temperature is forecast to drop from 16 degrees to a chilly 12 by the end of the match.
Match stats
• Phil Salt averages 64.00 across 13 T20I innings vs West Indies (3x 100, 3x 50).
• Adil Rashid has four wickets across his 2x T20Is at Chester-le-Street but has gone wicketless in his last three international appearances at the venue.
• From January 2022 onwards, England led the H2H 8-7.
• Since beating England at Chester-le-Street in 2017, West Indies have lost 26 of their last 37 T20I away games (L9, N2).
• Alzarri Joseph vs Will Jacks in T20Is: 3/26 from 16 balls.