Prediction: Australia will be the centre of attention as the hosts attempt to defeat Sri Lanka

Posted by Xchange Tickets on October 25th, 2022

In their second Super 12 game of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup in Perth on Tuesday, Australia will be seeking to bounce back from their humiliating loss to New Zealand when they take on the defending champions of the Asia Cup, Sri Lanka.

 Australia was one of the favourites going into this competition because they were not only the defending Men's T20 World Cup champions but also the hosts of this major event. They had played some thrilling cricket in this style since the previous competition, which gave them even more confidence. On the opening weekend of the Super12 stage, however, the Trans-Tasman opponents dragged the Australians back to reality by totally outplaying them in their opening game.

The performance, as well as the outcome, was problematic; the bowling lacked penetration, and the batting unit broke down under stress. Australia had already lost to India in the warm-up game, making this their second consecutive setback.

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Australia must continue to rely on the expertise of its bowlers despite the bowling unit's poor performance in these two games, which is rather alarming for the hosts. The likes of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Adam Zampa are seasoned competitors who are also intimately familiar with their local environments; as a result, it can be anticipated that they will recover more quickly.

However, the Australian batsmen need to exercise a little caution in how they approach the Sri Lankan spinners on Tuesday. In recent years, Wanindu Hasaranga and Maheesh Theekshana have become one of the top spin-bowling teams in the world and are capable of doing a lot of harm. During the encounter against Ireland, the spin combo was evidently in fine form as they each took four wickets while maintaining an average combined economy rate of 5.50.

Throughout this season, the pacers from Sri Lanka have done a good job of supporting their spinners. The batting unit did underwhelm when they lost to Namibia shockingly in their first game of the competition, but they quickly rallied and have since put on fantastic performances to advance to the Super12 round.

Particularly, the openers have been in excellent shape. Pathum Nissanka got fifty against the UAE, and Kusal Mendis also has two consecutive half-centuries coming into this game. Nissanka missed the most recent game due to an injury, but Dhananjaya de Silva filled in admirably and scored a solid 31. Although the middle order hasn't started bowling, players like Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, and Dasun Shanaka are of the highest calibre.

As of right present, Sri Lanka has a significant advantage in the group thanks to their decisive victory over Ireland, giving them an NRR of +2.467. As a result of their lopsided loss to the Kiwis, Australia, on the other hand, had a net run rate of -4.450. In order to try to rebalance the balance, there will be added pressure on the hosts going into this game. They not only need to win, but they also need to do it by a wide margin. Together with the subpar NRR, another loss for Australia might be fatal.

Predicted Playing XIs

Australia 

Aaron Finch (c), David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

Sri Lanka

Kusal Mendis (wk), Dhananjaya de Silva, Charith Asalanka, Ashen Bandara, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka (c), Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Maheesh Theekshana, Binura Fernando, Lahiru Kumara

Key Players

Glenn Maxwell: Lately, he's been in a slump. This year in T20Is, Maxwell is only averaging 16.07 and his strike rate has dropped to 116.58, which is pretty low by his standards. To help his team advance to the semifinals, he must quickly return to the top of his game.

Kusal Mendis: Sri Lanka has recently started games steadily thanks to the top-order batsman. With 79 against the Netherlands and 68* against Ireland in their previous two games, Mendis set the tone for his squad. In this vital match against Australia, he will be aiming to play another solid knock.

Dream11 Fantasy Picks

Captaincy Pick: Wanindu Hasaranga

The wrist-spinner has bowled beautifully throughout this competition. Hasaranga has participated in four games so far and has taken nine wickets at an exceptional average of 9.77. Along with that, he has continued to keep a fantastic economy rate of 5.50. Hasaranga is a decent batter who can be counted on to contribute with important runs, despite the fact that he has yet to show anything particularly noteworthy with the bat.

Must-have Pick: David Warner

Warner has been in outstanding form in T20Is this year, despite the fact that he wasted a crucial scoring opportunity against New Zealand. In just eight games in 2022, the top-order batsman has scored 301 runs at a fantastic average of 43 and an even better strike rate of 154.35.

Differential Pick: Charith Asalanka 

With solid knocks of 31 in each of his last two innings, the Sri Lankan hitter has shown signs of regaining his form. In addition to being a skilled spinner, the left-handed hitter also hits well against pacers. In the previous T20 World Cup, he scored the most runs for Sri Lanka, scoring 231 runs at a 46.20 average.

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