It is hard to believe that the five-time 50-over World Champions are languishing in ninth place on the points table in the ongoing World Cup. But that is the reality Australia face as they take on another struggling side in Sri Lanka in Lucknow.
Just a glance through the stats of the Australian players, and you can see the reason behind their sorry display so far. None of the batters have scored a fifty. Barring Josh Hazlewood and, to an extent, Mitchell Starc, the bowlers too haven’t been up to the mark. It is the right time for the senior pros like David Warner and Steven Smith to raise their game. Pat Cummins has come under scrutiny as well for his perceived lack of tactical nous. He has also taken just a solitary wicket so far, although it has to be said that four catches were dropped off his bowling in the game against South Africa.
What about their opponents? Sri Lanka too find themselves in a hole. For a while, it seemed as if they would pull off a famous win over Pakistan. However, Muhammad Rizwan and Abdullah Shafique put on a game-breaking stand and eventually took Pakistan to two points. Chris Silverwood, the coach, and the rest of the think-tank would hope that Sri Lanka put on a better show in the field for their crunch game against Australia.
The coaching staff would also be worried about the bowling side of things. Sri Lanka have bagged only nine wickets combined. Out of that, four have been taken by just one bowler – Dilshan Madushanka. Matheesha Pathirana has gone for almost 10 an over and averages 92.5 with the ball. To make matters worse, Dasun Shanaka, the skipper, has been ruled out with a thigh injury, with Chamika Karunaratne announced as his replacement.
The one silver lining for Sri Lanka is the form of both Kusal Mendis and Sadeera Samarawickrama. And Sri Lanka would trust Mendis to lead from the front. Not just with the bat in hand, but also with his leadership.
Time and Venue Details
October 16, 2 PM, Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
Expected conditions
The re-laid pitch for the South Africa-Australia game offered some tennis ball bounce. The track also provided seam movement in the second innings. So, Australia might opt to bat first, if they win the toss this time around.
Possible XIs
Travis Head is expected to return to the Australian set-up only on Thursday. Until then, Australia don’t have enough options to rejig the batting order.
Australia: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.
RevSportz was informed that Pathirana has an issue with his shoulder. So, he could miss out. Karunaratne is set to come in for Shanaka.
Sri Lanka: Kusal Perera, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis (c, wk), Sadeera Samarawickrama, Charith Asalanka, Dhananjaya de Silva, Dunith Wellalage, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Kasun Rajitha, Dilshan Madushanka
Matchups
Mitchell Starc v Kusal Mendis: The Sri Lankan batter has a tendency to shuffle across and look to play pick-up shots over fine leg. Meanwhile, Starc has the left-arm angle and swing. This could be an interesting battle.
Team Speak
“A lot of Australian teams, when they’re backed into a corner, play their best cricket. We find ourselves in a corner early on in this tournament, but we’ve got to come out and put in a really good performance against Sri Lanka.” – Mitchell Marsh, Australia all-rounder.