PREVIEW - Germany T20I Tri-Series - DAY 3

Germany host France and Norway in aTri-Series in Krefeld with seven T20I matches over four days. Germany lead with two wins ahead of France and winless Norway as the trio head into the third day of T20 action.

Germany and France meet again on Day 3 after the hosts edged ahead on day two with a tense two-wicket win. France enjoy a double header on Saturday and face Norway another time in the second fixture on day three. 

MATCH 4

GERMANY (GER) v FRANCE (FRA)

0900 GMT | 1100 CEST | 1430 IST

GER Last Five Matches: W W W L W W

FRA Last Two Matches: W L

GERMANY (GER)

Captain: Venkatraman Ganesan

Wicketkeeper: Harish Srinivasan

Projected Top Four: Vijayshankar Chikkannaiah, Abdul-Shakoor Rahimzei, Venkatraman Ganesan, Rohit Singh

Projected Opening Bowlers: Sajid Liaqat, Nooruddin Mujadady

Spin Options: Vishnu Bharati, Ghulam Rasul Ahmadi, Venkatraman Ganesan.

GERMANY Key Players:

Venkatraman Ganesan, solid top-order batsman and captain, who plays for Dusseldorf Blackcaps. He is also a handy off-spinner. He has played six T20I matches after making his debut in 2019. Warmed up with an unbeaten 15 in the first game of the series to take his side to victory. He was impactful with the ball on day two, picking up two wickets against France.

Ghulam Rasul Ahmadi, tidy left-arm finger spinner with neat variations, picked up a four-wicket haul, leaking just five runs, in a sensational spell in the opening game against Norway in the Tri-series.

Rohit Singh, exciting top-order batsman, who also bowls medium pace. He has a highest score of 44* in T20Is and has played nine of them since his debut in 2019. He was the main architect in Germany's win over France on day two, scoring a brilliant unbeaten 68 of the 97 runs in the run chase.

FRANCE (FRA)

Captain: Usman Shahid

Wicketkeeper: Hevit Alodin Jackson

Projected Top Four: Noman Amjad, Usman Shahid, Usman Riaz Khan, Junaid Ahamed

Projected Opening Bowlers: Mustafa Omer, Rahmatullah Mangal

Spin Options: Usman Shahid, Ibrahim Jabarkhel, Mobashar Hussain Ashraf

FRANCE Key Players:

Usman Riaz Khan, hugely-talented batsman, who is the fourth-highest run-getter in 2021 in all cricket under the France Cricket Governing Body. Averaging 62.6, Usman smashed a highest score of 62* in four matches this year. He top-scored with 25 on day two against Germany.

Usman Shahid, captain and top-order batsman, made 151 runs at 37.75 and strike-rate of 138.53 in 2021. Plays for the Paris Universite Club. He picked up a wicket with the ball against Norway and played a handy role at the top in a solid opening partnership that paved the way for France's win. The skipper picked up a three-wicket haul with the ball, taking the new ball against Germany on day two.

Santhirakumaran Suventhiran, a tidy batsman with crisp stroke-play, made 254 runs with a highest-score of 75 in 2020 in cricket under France's governing body. He started the tri-series in good touch with a solid 34 from the top followed by a useful 21 against Germany.

Match Prediction: Hosts Germany have started the series in style and will look to keep their unbeaten record intact.

MATCH 5

FRANCE (FRA) v NORWAY (NOR)

1330 GMT | 1530 CEST | 1900 IST

FRA Last Two Matches:  W L

NOR Last Five Matches: L L L L L 

FRANCE (FRA)

Captain: Usman Shahid

Wicketkeeper: Hevit Alodin Jackson

Projected Top Four: Noman Amjad, Usman Shahid, Usman Riaz Khan, Junaid Ahamed

Projected Opening Bowlers: Mustafa Omer, Rahmatullah Mangal

Spin Options: Usman Shahid, Ibrahim Jabarkhel, Mobashar Hussain Ashraf

FRANCE Key Players:

Usman Riaz Khan, hugely-talented batsman, who is the fourth-highest run-getter in 2021 in all cricket under the France Cricket Governing Body. Averaging 62.6, Usman smashed a highest score of 62* in four matches this year. He top-scored with 25 on day two against Germany.

Usman Shahid, captain and top-order batsman, made 151 runs at 37.75 and strike-rate of 138.53 in 2021. Plays for the Paris Universite Club. He picked up a wicket with the ball against Norway and played a handy role at the top in a solid opening partnership that paved the way for France's win. The skipper picked up a three-wicket haul with the ball, taking the new ball against Germany on day two.

Santhirakumaran Suventhiran, a tidy batsman with crisp stroke-play, made 254 runs with a highest-score of 75 in 2020 in cricket under France's governing body. He started the tri-series in good touch with a solid 34 from the top followed by a useful 21 against Germany.

NORWAY (NOR)

Captain: Raza Iqbal

Wicketkeeper: Junaid Mehmood Hussain

Projected Top Four: Raza Iqbal, Ehtsham ul Haq, Waqas Ahmed, Junaid Mehmood Hussain

Projected Opening Bowlers: Faizan Mumtaz, Hashir Hussain

Spin Options: Bilal Safdar, Waqas Ahmed, Pritvhi Bhart, Raza Iqbal

NORWAY Key Players:

Raza Iqbal, the Norway captain is a brilliant all-rounder, who played a key role in helping Norway top the Group C of 2018 ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier. He made 125 runs and took 9 wickets at an economy of 3.35 in the tournament. In the Regional qualifiers in 2020, he took five wickets with his left-arm wrist spin. He was tidy with the ball against Germany and made a solid 24 against France in their first fixture of the series.

Faizan Mumtaz, the aggressive right-arm quick and lower-order batter played a key role in the  2018 ICC T20 World Cup Europe Qualifier, but is yet to play an international T20I after Norway's matches got ICC recognition. 

Pritvhi Bhart, right arm wrist spin bowler, Bhart gets good flight and turn and was very economical the last time these teams met.  His three overs leaked just 12 runs then. The all-rounder has played five T20Is till date.

Match Prediction: France to complete a second win in the series against winless Norway.  

__________________

🏏1000 Live & Exclusive European Cricket Matches in 2021 on the European Cricket Network 🏏

Connect with the ECN on our Official Channels

|| WhatsApp Group

|| Telegram Group

|| Telegram Channel