 Yeah, we're switching to cricket now on this Wednesday edition of the Sports Maxon the Caribbean will host the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup but another ICC show piece takes center stage in less than 24 hours the men's 50 of a World Cup bowls off in India on Thursday and despite the Western is not competing this time around the show goes on of course England and New Zealand will clash in the opening match in a repeat of the last edition's final where England came out as the winners in an exciting final at lords that went into a super over both teams are facing injury issues with Kane Williamson confirmed to miss the first three matches for the black caps while Ben Stokes is in doubt for the opener joining us via zoom to preview this potential blockbuster of an opening matches international cricket commentator Fazeer Mohammed Faaz great to have you back on the Sports Maxon in our in our new setting and what a way to start the ICC 50 of a World Cup indeed good to be about the Starship Enterprise but that impressive you said that you have there but certainly you know that the World Cup can really take off with this opening match and indeed if it's anything like the finale between these same two teams four years ago then it should really set the stage for the next six weeks of this World Cup interested to see if Ben Stokes will in fact play because he's uncertain for the opener and what a player Ben Stokes is Faaz he he is such a he is such an impact player that I don't know that there is another cricketer in the world who is capable of just just commanding a situation in a game in the way quite like he does I think you're absolutely right the score line so we saw it in the Azure series so in 2019 World Cup final yes he had a bit of luck along the way but I think it's the the shared weight of his persona and the factor again because of his own turbulent family experiences of a few years ago the fact that he was in a brawl in Southampton when the Westerners were there in 2017 in the midst of a couple of one-day nationals and the chasing experiences there that it's almost liberated it because you can get sucked in to the media hype especially in the United Kingdom especially in England and then you get preoccupied with what is being said what it was what is being in food the condemnation but I think what he has done and you see it in the style of England cricket not just the white ball format but also the red ball format now is that there's a sense of liberation that you go out there and enjoy the game and of course that is easier said than done when almost everything is on the line but he has certainly shown that the way he has played his cricket certainly over the last couple of years has reflected that that freedom and he has the skill of course to back it up yeah and as we had a brief discussion in our production meeting this morning whether we would in fact do a segment previewing the world cup because the West Indies aren't there and it was a brief discussion we decided the weight of the event commands us having some discussion on it but pretty painful the next few weeks for the West Indies fans watching this fast. If it were only a few weeks it would be bearable but it's six weeks six weeks on a bit land you know there's a word in Trinidad and Diego called Tabanka. Tabanka means you have this longing this yearning for a loved one well this is a cricket tabanka because to think that this is a world cup where the West Indies were the first champions the second champions could have been the third but for that upset set the trend set the standard and during the tournament I'm sure you're gonna hear some of the great names of West Indies cricket being mentioned with a sense of awe by a lot of the commentators and the West Indies are not there so so really this is a painful experience and there is no distraction there's no T20 T20 T10 or T anything going on anywhere because this is the supreme showpiece of the cricketing in it. Yeah but the CWIC Genesaur and Super 50 start soon fast so that's a distraction. So no Tabanka. I don't know about that I really hope the tournament goes well it's disappointing already to see that Nicholas Puran has made himself unavailable for the Trinidad and Diego Red Force which again is a another talking point but yeah it's going to be going on it's going to be welcome to see our character in cricket as an action but let's face it it's not the World Cup. Yeah that is a quick question from me which of the teams do you think look like you know outright favourites are they just the regular ones that we always talk about. Yeah well I was looking at it and I was trying to come up with a four and I can't get too far away but I can't get to be at all from the four from the last World Cup. I think India are the clear favourites this time around. You've got England as well yes they may be aging but they still have a tremendous amount of quality in their team that to the extent they're going to leave out Jason Roy at the last moment and bring in Harry Brook. You've got of course the New Zealanders who might be a bit off the board but again you never discount them. You look at their record from the first World Cup in 75 when they reached the semi-finals and lost to the West Indies. They are always there or they're about and of course Australia because Australia are Australia. They may never be 100 percent at any given time but you never discount them and that's why those are my four that I see making the semi-finals. Yeah okay Faz let's see if that works out. You know I have a lot of admiration when these things come up for the Aussies but no matter what cricket is being played now I take India. If it's T20 I take India. If it's test cricket I take India. If it's ODI cricket I take India. They just have too many match winners so India to me is a team to beat. So let's let's see let's see how that goes. Bringing it back home though the West Indies women preparing for us to do battle with the Australians in the series deciding third and final T20 international Thursday morning Caribbean time of course it would be live on Sportsmax the series locked at 1-1 and Hayley Matthews will be eyeing another stellar performance with her team. What will it take for the Windies to get over the line here because they were tremendous in the second match not bad in the first match but they need a repeat performance to get by the Aussies. Indeed it was tremendous. It was record breaking. It was fantastic. The concern there would be the reliance on the captain Hayley Matthews. 99 in the first match 132 in the second former captain Stefani Taylor a valuable contribution as well. You're not going to be able to sustain that for example in tournament play and we saw that at the last women's event international event. Hayley Matthews performance speaks for itself. She's taking over from Stefani Taylor who had that standard as the top all around the world for a long long time before injuries and loss of form and so many other elements came into it. So yes you'd want Hayley Matthews to lead from the front yet again. But for the sake of the West Indies women's game you want the other players to step up. Chanel Henry, Shalika Gajnabee and so many others. They've got to recognize that you can't rely on your captain alone. You can't rely on your stellar former captain as well. Yes they may deliver. Yes they could again surprise the Australian. The guy thought the Australians tactics bowling to Hayley Matthews were poor. This idea of bowling wide outside the off stump just seemed to make no sense at all. But credit Hayley Matthews that she capitalized on it. So she's going to have to contend I'm sure with some different tactics this time around going into that match tomorrow morning our time. But I think more importantly is for the other players the other players around the stellar performers to step up and give a more concerted comprehensive effort for the West Indies. Yeah I agree with you Farz because if you look particularly at Hayley Matthews and you referenced it just now 99 in the first game 132 in the second game and you know the law of average would suggest that she may not be as prolific in this third match and given the quality of this Australian team she will need to be because if she if she if she isn't and the other players don't come to the fore the West Indies could be in problems here added to the fact that the Australians based on their temperament they're the type of team they come up a loss like this and they come out angry and guns blazing the next match and win comprehensively that's that's how they are generally. Absolutely and that's what the West Indies have to prepare for. You've got to tell us OK you were on a high with that tremendous victory. No one expected it really in the context of the game. Maybe the die hard would have but I certainly didn't when I saw a total of over 200 but they pulled it off fantastic tremendous. No you've got to put that behind you and prepare for the backlash and you've got to be ready to take on the Australians at their own game once again. It's easier said than done of course but the fact that they won and won so famously just a couple of days ago they should build on that not with the expectation again that OK don't worry the skipper is going to get the bulk of the runs. So Farni Taylor is going to make a significant contribution and they're going to take us home. No you as a player you have to tell yourself that look I am going to be the one stepping forward. I am going to be the one to deliver. If it is that the captain falls early it's not the end of the world. We're going to continue whether we're setting a target or chasing a target. That has to be the belief in the side. I agree with your 100 percent fast. So in Trinidad and Tobago tomorrow morning Eastern Caribbean time 405 is the start time for this third and deciding T20 international. It's 305 in Jamaica and British certain we'll all be watching. Thanks guys. We'll talk again soon. Pleasure. Take care. Yeah. Back with more on the sports mat zone after this.