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Cricket’s oldest rivals, England and Australia will meet in a highly-anticipated clash in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday.
Both sides were overwhelming favourites to finish first, but a few games into the Super 12 stage has put them on the road of uncertainty. Both teams have played two matches where they have lost one, respectively. The advantage that England have is their net run rate (NRR) which is +0.239, while Australia have a negative NRR of -1.555.
Pitch and Weather report:
Seamers have enjoyed a lot of success so far at this venue. Since both sides have quality pace attacks, fans can expect a cracker of a game unless the rain plays a spoilsport. Notably, the MCG has already witnessed a washout and rain is yet again expected at the time of the match.
Probable XIs:
England: Jos Buttler (C & WK), Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
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
Recent form:
Australia: WLLLW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
England: LWWWW
What they said:
“The group is wide open because any team can win on any day. That’s the thing about T20; you can’t take anything for granted in a game. Afghanistan, they’re a really skillful, talented side. Ireland have got the skills there. Sri Lanka on a day can beat anyone as well. So, I think the group was always going to be wide open, and it’s a tough group to get through, no doubt,” said Australian skipper Aaron Finch after Ireland’s win over England.
“I thought his bowling has been a real bonus for us. I think a lot of people probably underestimate his bowling coming into this tournament. And he’s been key for us. I think he’s bowled some big overs particularly in the power play. With the bat, he hasn’t come off yet. But his career would suggest that at some point someone’s going to pay a price and hopefully that’s Australia in a day’s time,” said England head coach Matthew Mott on all-rounder Ben Stokes.
