Montreal Tigers vs Edmonton Royals, Global T20 Canada 2019, Match 9: Preview, predictions, likely XIs

Montreal Tigers and Edmonton Royals will face each other on July 31 and are expected to have a close fight.

Montreal were lucky in their last encounter against Vancouver Knights. A Gayle storm set a target of 277 for the tigers but then the match was stopped due to an incoming rainstorm. So they have won the first match reduced to 12-overs, curtailed to 101 in the second one, and the third one ended with no result. This match will not be an easy one for the Tigers. Thisara Perera and Isuru Udana are still away for Sri Lanka fixtures. Dinesh Chandimal and Ruvindu Gunasekera were the new recruits in the last game which might give some boost to the batting.

Edmonton, on the other hand, are the only team yet to win a match in this edition of Global T20 Canada. The good part is that the Royals have not surrendered so far. They lost to Toronto Nationals by two wickets in a close encounter. Even the second match against Brampton Wolves saw them trying to chase down although choking eventually. So the Royals with a number of experienced and potential players like Faf du Plessis, Jimmy Neesham, and Ben Cutting have all the chances to secure a win this time. Kane Williamson is yet to play a game. His inclusion can be a game changer move.

Head to head: These two had only one meeting in the last edition and the Tigers came out victorious.

Key Players:

Sunil Narine (Montreal Tigers)- Narine with his experience of playing global leagues is one of the most dependable players for Tigers. Narine’s batting was for everyone to see in the first match. The last match saw him delivering the most impressive spell (4-0-50-1) in front of the rampage of Gayle.

Jimmy Neesham (Edmonton Royals)- The New Zealand all-rounder looks mostly in form and has been delivering with both bat and ball decently so far. A little more tight bowling and build on the good starts while batting will make him the most effective all-rounder option of the team.

Likely XIs:

Montreal Tigers: Kyle Coetzer, Sunil Narine, Anton Devcich, George Bailey (c), Matthew Cross (wk), Dinesh Chandimal, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Keemo Paul, Mohammad Naveed, Dillon Heyliger, Nikhil Dutta

Edmonton Royals: Navneet Dhaliwal, Richie Berrington, Faf du Plessis (c), Kane Williamson, Jimmy Neesham, Ben Cutting, Shadab Khan, Anshuman Rath (wk), Safyaan Sharif, Akash Gill, Kyle Phillip

Prediction: The Royals will clinch the first win of the season.