Cricket lovers in the United States are in for a special treat when West Indies host India at Broward County Stadium, in Lauderhill, Florida for the fourth and fifth Kuhl Stylish Fans T20I Series, powered by Black and White.
Heading into the action-packed weekend, West Indies lead the series 2-1, after winning the first game in Trinidad and the second in Guyana, before India rebounded in game three in Guyana to keep the series alive.
At least 15,000 spectators are expected to attend, travelling in from around the USA, the Caribbean and beyond. A combined audience of over 200 million viewers will tune into the matches live on television and on their mobile devices.
“Cricket West Indies, as hosts of the Kuhl Stylish Fans T20I Series, powered by Black and White, are delighted by Visit Lauderdale and the Florida Sports Foundation’s support for the event as we seek to grow awareness of and participation in cricket in the USA, especially with a significant Caribbean diaspora in North America and such large communities of Indian cricket fans,” Cricket West Indies said on Friday.
“Additionally, with the USA hosting ICC 2024 T20I World Cup matches, this is a great opportunity for Broward County Stadium as USA’s leading cricket venue to be showcasing two of the most exciting teams in world cricket ahead of next year’s World Cup.”
Speaking on behalf of his team shortly after arrival, West Indies Head Coach Daren Sammy said they are excited to be back Fort Lauderdale.
“We thank the great hosts here for welcoming us and staging the matches. We’re really looking forward to this weekend.
There is a lot to play for and we really want to put on a good show for the fans. It’s always non-stop action when we play at Broward County Stadium…the atmosphere is amazing…we feel at home. The players are pumped up for what is to come in these two matches. We’d love to see local Floridians come out and enjoy.”
Stacy Ritter, President and CEO of Visit Lauderdale said:
“Greater Fort Lauderdale is enormously proud to sponsor this tournament and showcase Broward County Stadium, the leading cricket stadium in the United States, to cricket fans from all over the globe.”
Ritter continued: “We welcome everyone under the sun and are delighted to host these remarkable athletes and their devoted fans in what promises to a weekend filled with great sportsmanship and competition.”
The two teams will feature some of the most dynamic and entertaining players in the cricket. West Indies are led by captain Rovman Powell and have in their ranks talismanic all-rounder Jason Holder and wicket-keeper/batsman Nicholas Pooran, who won the Player-of-the-Match awards in the first and second matches.
India is led by Hardik Pandya, a star performer with bat and ball, and their squad includes world stars such as Suryakumar Yadav in their powerful batting line-up and left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav leading the bowling attack.
Grandstand and VIP Hospitality tickets are still available for both matches and fans can purchase online tickets and parking passes from the Windies Tickets service, presented by Mastercard, at tickets.windiescricket.com.
The venue box office will be open from 08:30h on Saturday and Sunday.
Team news
If fit, Holder should replace Roston Chase. West Indies can also consider bringing in Shai Hope for one of Brandon King and Johnson Charles.
West Indies (probable): 1 Kyle Mayers, 2 Brandon King, 3 Johnson Charles, 4 Nicholas Pooran (wk), 5 Rovman Powell (capt), 6 Shimron Hetmyer, 7 Jason Holder/Roston Chase, 8 Romario Shepherd, 9 Akeal Hosein, 10 Alzarri Joseph, 11 Obed McCoy
Expect India to stick with the same XI that won them the third T20I.
India (probable): 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Shubman Gill, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Tilak Varma, 5 Sanju Samson (wk), 6 Hardik Pandya (capt), 7 Axar Patel, 8 Kuldeep Yadav, 9 Arshdeep Singh, 10 Mukesh Kumar, 11 Yuzvendra Chahal (CWI)
