England vs West Indies | Predictions for Day 5 at Old Trafford

By1XBet, SportsCafe Editor

07/20/2020

After England put up a total of 469/9(d) in the 1st innings, West Indies reciprocated with quite a resistance but could only manage to reach 287 with Broad bagging three quick wickets. England, who had a big lead of 182 runs, were struck twice by Roach, taking the total to 37/2 at Stumps on Day 4.

Weather report

After the entire proceedings of Day 3 of the Manchester Test was completely washed out by rain, naturally, Day 4’s play became pretty crucial for both teams and especially for the hosts as West Indies already had a 1-0 lead in the series. Fortunately for the hosts, the day 4 weather was quite a blessing given the play was uninterrupted after a day of wash out. England, who have a lead of 291 runs with 8 wickets remaining, would want to go for the win on Day 5. And luckily for them, according to Accuweather, the skies will remain clear for most parts of the day, giving a fair chance of a full day's play on the final day.

Pitch report

After the first hour of play of Day 1 was marred by rain, and after the 260-run partnership between Ben Stokes and Dom Sibley, the pitch seemed to favour the batsmen. Even during the West Indies innings, as the pitch slowed down, England had to wait for a significant time to gain an advantage over the batsman up until Broad dismissed Brooks. The pitch sure slowed down in the middle, but Broad’s spell showcased how pace and good length can do wonders on this pitch. West Indies could take a leaf out of Broad’s bowling, as Roach did, to bowl England out as quickly as possible.

Key Batsman

England - Ben Stokes: The England vice-captain, who is the 2nd best all-rounder in the world currently, is known for turning challenging games in favour of his team. It was Stokes’ 176 in the first innings that inspired England’s gigantic total of 469/9(d) and even as he opened with Buttler, an unlikely opening partnership, Stokes remained unbeaten on 16 off 18. Meanwhile, Kemar Roach bagged the wickets of Buttler and Crawley early, taking England’s total to 37/2 at the end of Day 4’s play. Moreover, with England wanting to put up a defendable target while also securing enough time to bowl Windies out, the onus will be on Stokes to firepower the innings. Undoubtedly, he's the 1XBet favourite for the same.

Key Bowler

West Indies- Kemar Roach: The 32-year-old Windies pacer, who was wicketless in the Southampton Test, made his selection count with two wickets in the first innings even as bowling conditions turned out to be quite challenging. In the second innings, Roach fired early and struck twice before Stumps to get rid of Buttler and Crawley. England have a 219-run lead on the Windies, so with that extra pace and desperation, expect Roach to do wonders on the Old Trafford pitch on Day 5. Windies saving the Test might very well depend on how much damage Roach does to the English batting.

1xBet Prediction

Both the captain and his deputy - Joe Root (8*) and Stokes(16*) remained unbeaten at Stumps Day 4 of the 2nd Test. Stokes opened under the dying of light and yet survived the difficult hours. In his last five completed Test innings, Stokes has scored at least 43 runs and as 1xbet suggests, the English vice-captain will step up again on Day 5 and score at least 43 runs.