T20WC Preview: AUS vs BAN

There is a lot of competition for the second semi-final spot in Group 1 of the Super 12 round between Australia and South Africa. Australia will be aiming to win this game against a struggling Bangladeshi team and strengthen their semi-final chances. The Aussies were schooled by Jos Buttler in their last game and the Aussies are now in a spot of bother and need to win both their remaining games and hope that South Africa loses against England.

Australia will need a good performance from their batters and bowlers in this do-or-die game. Skipper Aaron Finch and David Warner will need to replicate their performances against Sri Lanka while Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, and others have to take responsibility in this game.

Their bowlers had an off day against England otherwise they have done decently well in the first two games. Mitchell Starc is coming back to his old, ruthless self while Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins have been consistent as well. We saw Bangladesh's batting struggling against the pace of Rabada and Nortje so the pace trio will be crucial for the Aussies. Adam Zampa has been very consistent with the ball while Ashton Agar did well in the last game.

Bangladesh now has nothing to lose and they should come out on the field with a positive mindset and play fearless cricket. Injuries have made life difficult for them after Shakib was ruled out of the tournament and the form of their batters is not helping the cause either. Mushfiqur Rahim is terribly out of form while the others have failed to put in performances consistently as well. Bangladesh will need their batters to perform if they have to give themselves any chance of winning this game.

Their bowlers have been pretty average as well. Mustafizur Rahman has failed to pick wickets which has affected their performance a lot. Mahedi Hasan and Nasum Ahmed have done well with their finger spin bowling. Taskin Ahmed picked 2 wickets in the last game. Bangladesh will play for pride in this game but the Aussies seem to be a very tough opponent for them.

Probable Playing 11

Both teams are expected to field an unchanged eleven.
 

Australia: Aaron Finch (c), David Warner, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Wade (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.

Bangladesh: Liton Das (wk), Mohammad Naim, Soumya Sarkar, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah (c), Afif Hossain, Mahedi Hasan, Shamim Hossain, Nasum Ahmed, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman.

Pitch Report

This is a day game and will be played in Dubai. The wicket should be good for batting despite being a day game. Scores in the range of 150-160 will be a good total. Spinners will be crucial and will get some assistance off the wicket. Teams will opt to chase after winning the toss.

Head to Head

Overall: Australia lead 5-4
In T20WC: Australia lead 4-0

Match-Ups

Soumya vs Hazlewood: 3 runs off 16 balls, 2 dismissals
Naim vs Hazlewood: 21 runs for 2 dismissals
Mahmudullah vs Agar: 21 runs for 2 dismissals
Mahmudullah vs Zampa: Average 49, SR 132
Warner vs Mahedi: 14 runs for 1 dismissal
Smith vs Mustafizur: 19 runs for 1 dismissal
Finch vs Left Arm Pace: Average 171, SR 151
Warner vs Left Arm Pace: Average 26, SR 128
Maxwell vs Left Arm Pace: Average 23, SR 142
Mushfiqur vs Right Arm Pace: Average 19
Naim vs Right Arm Pace: Average 30, SR 112

Key Players

Australia:

• Aaron Finch Aaron Finch has scored 81 runs in 3 innings at an average of 27. He has got starts but failed to convert them into big scores. Finch hasn’t been up to his best in this tournament till now but expectations will be high from him to lead his team from the front in this do-or-die game and he’ll look to do the same as well.
   
• Mitchell Starc: Bangladesh batters struggle against high pace bowling and it makes Mitchell Starc even more crucial in this game. If Starc can push Bangladesh on the back foot early in their innings then it’ll be easy for the Aussies and it will help them boost their NRR as well. He has 4 wickets at an economy of 8.72 in the tournament.
   
• Glenn Maxwell: Maxwell is yet to fire in this tournament. He was in exceptional form with the bat in the IPL but has surprisingly failed in the World T20. He has scored only 29 runs in 3 innings. Aussies will expect the “Big Show” to be at his best in this game.

Bangladesh:

• Mushfiqur Rahim: Mushfiqur Rahim must take responsibility in the batting order especially in Shakib’s absence. After the first game against Sri Lanka Mushfiqur has scores of 29, 8, and 0. He is the senior-most batter of the side and everyone expects him to set an example with his performances on the field.
   
• Mahmudullah: Bangladesh’s batting is looking very weak especially with their batters being terribly out of form and Mahmudullah needs to play a captain’s knock to bring some confidence in his troops. He too has failed to put in a big score in the Super 12 round and has a good opportunity to score some runs against the Aussies and lift the morale of his team.
   
• Mustafizur Rahman: Mustafizur Rahman was rested in the last game. He has been off the charts as well with his bowling. Mustafizur has only 2 wickets to his name in 3 games of the Super 12 round. He must come back strongly and pick some wickets to help his side win against Australia.

Dream11 Prediction

Top Captain Picks:

• Mitchell Starc (Bowl First)
• Aaron Finch
• David Warner
• Steve Smith (Risky)
• Josh Hazlewood (Risky)

Disclaimer:  These teams are based on the writer's understanding of the game and do not guarantee to win in fantasy cricket. Users are advised to create their own teams with the information provided.