(Cricket news) Sri Lanka and Australia are both coming off very good victories as both the teams will look to continue this momentum going forward in the tournament. For Sri Lanka their new aged superstars have been terrific, winning all their matches up until now, the conditions are also suiting the Sri Lankan bowlers as it won’t be a cake walk for Australia as many will think they will be outright favourites in this match.
Australia's last match would take a lot of positives but on the other hand there were some worrying signs also for them, there might be some concern going into the match as Mitchell Starc limped off from training. If Starc misses out then it will be a big blow for them, considering the big role he plays for them in death overs, if he's out then Kane Richardson will be replacing him. David Warner and Glenn Maxwell love playing against Sri Lanka as they hold a good record against them, if David Warner is to get back to form then he can do it against them. The concern going into the match would be tackling the Sri Lankan spinners as the Austrailans in 2021 have lost 59 wickets in 16 T20 matches averaging only at 6.60 against spin. Steve Smith will likely play as the floater in the team so that the middle order gets a bit more stability.
Ever since Dasun Shanka took over captaincy for Sri Lanka, the fortunes of the team have changed completely, going into the match they will clearly be the underdogs but it won’t be a surprise if they tackle the mighty Aussies also. In the last match, Charith Asalanka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa took the Lankan giants home quite easily in the end, a positive sign not only in this tournament but Sri Lanka cricket in general, the strength in depth for Sri Lanka is quite underrated, they bat really deep and have seven bowling options in the team to keep opposition guessing. The major news from the Sri Lankan camp is that Maheesh Theekshana, who would come straight in place of Binura Fernando. Wanindu Hasaranga was smashed for 60 runs in 4 overs in 2019 but since then he has risen to one of the most sought after T20 cricketers, his battle with Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell will be one to watch out for.
Head to head: Australia 8 – 8 Sri Lanka (2-1 in T20 World Cups, this is the first time they will meet in World Cup after 2010)
Pitch and Weather report: Dubai has been a box of surprises as they aren’t overly in favour of the batsmen or the bowlers. One thing is certain, the captain winning the toss would be chasing considering there is a lot of dew in this venue. The temperature will be around 32 degrees in the day but will drop down to 25 degrees in the evening, as of now there is no chance of rain.
Interesting facts:
- Warner averages 55.90 in T20Is against Sri Lanka
- Maxwell has dismissed Kusal Perera twice in 13 balls in T20s
- Lahiru Kumara needs 4 wickets to reach 100 international wickets
- Aaron Finch needs 27 runs to become the fifth batter to complete 2500 runs in T20s
- Glenn Maxwell needs 7 sixes to complete a 100 sixes in T20s and only become the second Australian to do so.
Also read: T20 World Cup: England continue their dominant run by defeating Bangladesh by 8 wickets
Probable XI for Australia:
1 David Warner, 2 Aaron Finch (capt), 3 Mitchell Marsh, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Glenn Maxwell, 6 Marcus Stoinis, 7 Matthew Wade (wk), 8 Pat Cummins, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood
Probable XI for Sri Lanka:
1 Kusal Perera (wk), 2 Pathum Nissanka, 3 Charith Asalanka, 4 Avishka Fernando, 5 Wanindu Hasaranga, 6 Bhanuka Rajapaksa, 7 Dasun Shanka (capt), 8 Chamika Karunaratne, 9 Dushmantha Chameera, 10 Lahiru Kumara, 11 Binura Fernando/Maheesh Theekshana
