Discover plenty of insight via our T20 World Cup predictions.
There is plenty of interesting action set for day eight of the tournament.
Read on for more helpful information about how proceedings could play out in India and Sri Lanka.
Ireland v Oman
Key talking points
Ireland
Ireland have had a tough start to their campaign, drawn to face the top two seeds in the pool first.
Their fielding in the opener let them down badly as they grassed six catches, but they looked a lot tighter in their second outing against Australia.
While two losses don’t necessarily mean they are out of the tournament, it certainly doesn’t bode well for them and they will be hungry to beat Oman, who in 20th place on the rankings are significantly lower on the rankings.
They face the very real prospect of being without veteran skipper Paul Stirling who hobbled off against Australia with a knee injury.
Oman
It’s one thing playing against fellow associate nations, it is quite another in the rarified air of an actual World Cup – and Oman are finding this out the hard way.
It’s not going to be any easier for them on Saturday, although, with only Australia to play once the Ireland game is done, you have to think that this is their best chance of causing an upset.
Oman scored 106 in their first game and 120 in their second and have looked overwhelmed both times.
Venue: Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo
Ireland and Oman have each played once previously at the ground with both sides coming out on the losing side.
Ireland played there against Canada in 2010 while Oman’s game against Zimbabwe from earlier in the current tournament was hosted at the ground.
Despite being a well-established Test venue, the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground has hosted just five previous T20Is. The most recent was Tuesday’s encounter between Pakistan and USA.
The highest total recorded at the ground was Pakistan’s 190 for nine made against USA earlier in the tournament.
The average first innings score at the ground is 158.
This will be the fourth game of the current World Cup to be hosted here.
Sri Lanka have never played a T20I at the venue – all the matches at the ground have been between neutral sides.
Canada’s 176 for three made against Ireland in 2010 is the lowest score ever defended at the venue.
Weather
Expect a hot and humid Saturday lunchtime in Colombo on Saturday. Temperatures will peak around 31 degrees.
While mostly sunny, expect broken clouds and a slight chance of light, scattered showers – probably not enough to see the game rain out, but perhaps enough to cause a delay or two.
Light northeasterly breezes will provide minor relief from the heat.
Form
- Ireland: L, L, W, W, L
- Oman: L, L, W, W, L
Key players
Lorcan Tucker
A talented player, Tucker has made starts in both his outings at the World Cup. He’s good at getting going it turns out, although he struggles to turn his starts into serious contributions as a highest score of 94* and an average of 21.52 imply.
Tucker does score his runs quickly, although a strike rate of 121.63 could do with being a little higher. He is a quality batsman with a Test century to his credit and against Oman he will fancy his chances of imposing himself.
Mohammad Nadeem
Veteran batsman Nadeem is now 43 years old, but he showed he still knows how to do it as he top scored for Oman in their defeat against Pakistan with a patient 53 as wickets fell all around him.
He missed the tournament opener against Zimbabwe but showed what had been missing when drafted in for Thursday’s game.
Not the fastest batter with a strike rate of just over 100, Nadeem showed against Sri Lanka that he can play the situation very well.
Prediction: Ireland
Both sides have lost their opening two games, but where Ireland have acquitted themselves well, Oman has been beaten brutally.
They were all at sea against Zimbabwe before they folded against Sri Lanka. And while Saturday’s game may be a little close, Ireland is hungry for that first win of the tournament and they will come hard.
Expect them to win with relative ease.
Also read: 8 of the strangest cricket injuries
England v Scotland
Key talking points
England: England are susceptible to spin. Against the West Indies they collapsed from a comfortable 74 for one to be all out for 166 with six wickets falling to the spinners in teh middle overs.
The BBC put it nicely when they said: “England’s struggles against spin are not unique to this latest side. They go back generations.
“If fans hoped this iteration had found a successful method when in Sri Lanka before this tournament, this result – under the pressure that comes with a World Cup chase – suggests otherwise.”
England are the third ranked side in the world, but their capitulation against the Windies will be as much a concern for them as it will be a beacon of hope for Scotland (and others teams they will face later in the competition).
Scotland
A month ago, Scotland were planning to watch the World Cup on television.
Now they head into a derby encounter against the third-best team in the world, England, sitting ahead of them on the table.
Scotland looked composed and controlled in their win over Italy and they will take heart from the fact that Saturday’s opponents, England, also lost to the West Indies.
What it means is that Saturday’s game is effectively a battle for second place on the table.
Scotland have never lost to England in a T20I (they have never beaten them either, their only previously scheduled game was a no-result) and they will be up for a fight on Saturday.
Venue: Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Scotland have played two games at Eden Gardens – their opening day loss at the hands of the West Indies was the first while their win over Italy was the second. This will be their third game at the venue this tournament.
England have played three games at the ground. Winning one and losing two.
The average first innings score at Eden Gardens is 158.
The highest T20I score made at Eden Gardens was Scotland’s 207 for four from 20 overs against Italy earlier in the tournament.
The highest score successfully chased at the ground was India‘s 162 for four against the West Indies in 2022.
Of the 14 T20Is played at Eden Gardens there has been an even split between setting and chasing – the chasing side have won seven as have the side that bats first.
Weather
Expect a pleasant and mild Saturday evening in Kolkata on Saturday. The sun sets around 5:30 and temperatures will settle at a comfortable 22 degrees before dipping to a nighttime low of 16.
With clear skies and light north-westerly breezes, it is ideal for cricket. There will be no rain.
Form
- England: L, W, W, W, W
- Scotland: W, L, L, L, W
Key players
Sam Curran
Coming in at six allrounder Curran takes the finisher role for England and he is in good touch now. He looked good in the loss against the West Indies keeping his end going nicely with an undefeated 44 while wickets all around him.
He didn’t do much against Nepal, but before that he average 79 runs in the series against Sri Lanka, and he bagged a hattrick with the ball for good measure.
He is high on confidence and will be wanting to assert himself against Scotland on Saturday.
George Munsey
Munsey could do no wrong in Scotland’s win over Italy. Quite how he missed out on the Man of the Match Award, when he made 84 runs and took a tournament equalling record of four catches, is hard to comprehend.
But Munsey won’t be worried about that, he will just want to add to his very impressive body of work that already has him ranked at 21st on the list of most runs scored at T20 World Cup.
With 568 World Cup runs to his credit at an average of 31.55 Munsey has shown himself to be excellent at this level – he needs just 12 more runs to draw level with Kevin Pietersen who is 19th in the list.
Prediction: England
Having lost against the West Indies on Wednesday England will want to bounce back quickly with a dominant display against their countrymen.
This is a derby game and one that the Scots would love to win. But it’s a game that England can’t afford to lose if they want to advance in the competition and they should have more than enough in the tank to see off Scotland.
New Zealand v South Africa
Key talking points
New Zealand
The Black Caps are masters of getting the job done quietly and efficiently. They go about their work with the minimum amount of fuss. Ranked fourth in the world, New Zealand are one spot ahead of South Africa on the ICC rankings.
The Kiwis are all but through to the Super Eights so they will just want to continue doing their basics right, building momentum and finding their best form.
South Africa
The roller coaster ride that was South Africa’s game against Afghanistan has hogged the headlines in South Africa as fans and pundits attempt to make sense of what went down.
It was a crazy game where both sides deserved to win, and where, at different stages, both sides thought that they had.
There will be plenty of learnings for the Proteas, which they have hopefully taken on board – not least of which is eliminating the no balls from their game.
With Afghanistan now accounted for, Aiden Markram and his team will take comfort from the fact that Saturday’s encounter against eth Black Caps is not a must-win game.
Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
South Africa have played three previous T20Is in Ahmedabad, a loss in 2025 and two wins in the current tournament (against Canada on Afghanistan). New Zealand have appeared there once previously, a loss back in 2023.
Saturday’s game will be the 11th T20I to be held at the venue.
The side that won the toss has fielded first in nine of the ten games played at the ground.
The average first innings score at the ground is 171.
The highest score made at the ground was India’s 234 for four from 20 overs scored against New Zealand in 2023. The Kiwi’s reply to that score was the lowest ever total at the ground – they were dismissed for just 66 runs.
The highest score successfully chased at the ground was India’s 166 for three from 17.5 overs, made against England in 2021. Afghanistan chased 187 on Wednesday, which was enough to tie the game but not to win it.
South Africa have played all their games at the current World Cup at the ground.
Weather
Expect a pleasant, clear night in Ahmedabad on Saturday. Temperatures will dip to a cool 16 degrees, offering a refreshing break from the daytime heat.
With low humidity and calm northeasterly winds, it’s perfect weather for cricket. No rain is forecast, ensuring a dry, starry evening across the city.
Form
- New Zealand: W, W, L, W, L
- South Africa: W, W, L, W, W
Key players
Glenn Phillips
A genuine X-factor player, there is very little that Phillips cannot do. He is an electric fielder (he’s bagged five catches from two games thus far), he’s claimed one wicket and scored a brisk 42 from 25 balls.
For good measure he can also bat either left or right-handed. New Zealand are a squad full of good players but Phillips is the one with that something extra about him.
He is slated to come in at four and teh Proteas will be very conscious of his abilities – he averages 31.57 in teh format, and bats at a strike rate of 141.99.
Tristan Stubbs
When the initial squad for the T20 World Cup was announced Stubbs was omitted. But an injury to Donny Ferreira saw him claim his spot back and he has been a revelation ever since.
His batting in the Super Overs against Afghanistan was sensational, and he will have taken huge amounts of confidence from his performance.
Stubbs and David Miller are the designated finishers, and they did a great job last time out. Add his excellent catch into the mix and the man who led SEC to SA20 glory will be buzzing ahead of the New Zealand clash.
Prediction: South Africa
Aiden Markram’s side undoubtedly game themselves a big scare in the epic encounter against Afghanistan on Wednesday. The fact that they came through it will be a big boost.
Shukri Conrad likes to believe that his players will always find a way, and just when it looked like they had found a way to lose the game against Afghanistan, they flipped the script and found a way to win.
The Proteas have plenty of player in good form and while the Kiwis are not playing badly, they are a little less explosive and a little more measured – if this was an ODI we would be backing the Black Caps, but it’s not..
Expect the Proteas to get the job done with a little less tension and nerves than the Afghanistan game.
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