Sports
T20 World Cup in Australia- Chances of Sri Lankan team
By Dharmakulasingham Aiyampilai
The stage is set for the eighth edition of the T20 World Cup in Australia. Host country Australia, the defending champion has put in place elaborate preparation and exceptional Australian hospitality awaits the participating teams and others. The proud moments of winning the world cup in 1996 at Lahore still resonate in the hearts and minds of Sri Lankans. A proud cricketing nation that produced outstanding players of the calibre of Sathasivam, HIK. Fernando, Abu Fuard, Michel Thisera, Anura Tennakone and many others is eagerly waiting to witness a thrilling performance from the young team. Like the once powerful West Indies, Sri Lanka too slipped from the peak. The stakeholders of the game came up with an excuse of transition of the teams after many legends retired. What are the chances for Sri Lanka this time is the question many Sri Lankan fans are saddled with.
Just completed Asia cup unexpectedly renewed the energy levels of the Sri Lankan team and the self-belief has been restored. More importantly, the fear of failure has been removed by the wise words of the coach and the involvement of master tactician Mahela Jayawardene as a consultant coach is considered as a huge positive. Highly respected Mahela’s successful involvement with Mumbai Indians and his achievements as a master tactician brought him many accolades and Mahela was inducted to the ICC cricket Hall of Fame in 2021. Mahela’s tactical acumen is definitely going to be a blessing to the young Sri Lankan team which can gradually and easily acclimatise to the Australian conditions with the input from Mahela since he has been familiar with Australian conditions. Team Management including coach Silverwood, Mahela Jayawardena and others are well aware of the fact that risk management plays a vital aspect in T20 games.
Playing in Australia is all about adjusting to the pace and bounce and the dimensions of the grounds are bigger than many grounds in Sri Lanka and UAE. Sri Lanka is coming off a very successful Asia Cup tournament where the islanders sent shock waves by defeating much fancied India and Pakistan. Sri Lanka do not have big hitters or T20 stars like Chris Gayle, Andre Russel, Hales, Buttler, Suryakumar Yadev, Bracewell, David Warner etc. It is generally believed that batters who can easily clear the boundary lines can win the games. However, the Sri Lankan teams without much fancied big hitters or a local league like IPL or Big Bash reached finals on three occasions and 2014 was another memorable year for Sri Lankan cricket as it defeated the powerful Indian team in the final in Bangladesh under the captaincy of Kumar Sangakara. World Cup winning team under captain cool Arjuna Ranatunga at the 1999 World Cup was disastrous. Seam and swing conditions in English, among many reasons, were attributed to the poor performance of the star-studded Sri Lankan team. In other words, Asia Cup glory in Dubai on 12 September 2022 by defeating the strong Pakistan team by 23 runs can’t guarantee the same competitive performance in Australian conditions. Being drawn in group B with Namibia, UAE and Netherlands in the qualifying round before progressing to the super 12 stage Sri Lanka have the opportunity of playing three matches in Australian conditions. Training sessions and official warm-up matches will help the Sri Lankan team to face the Namibian team in the tour opener on 15th October at Geelong. It is pertinent to ask the question whether Sri Lanka have ticked all the boxes in the checklist.
The batting department is more or less looks settled with openers and the top order. Pathum Nissanka’s technique against pace and bounce conditions and Kusal Mendis attacking instinct with his ability to play pace and spin at the top would provide space for the other batsmen to phase out their innings. Asalanka had a quiet series in the Asia Cup and he is backed by the management since he scored heavily in the 2021 World Cup. Danuska Gunathilake, Dhananjaya de Silva, Bhanuka Rajapakse are all in good form. Captain Shanaka, Hasaranga and Karunaratne could give the finishing touches.
The bowling department is, particularly pace bowling, a strong area for the current team with Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Dilshan Madusanka, and Promod Madushan with all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne and skipper Shanaka for whom Australian pitches may be favourable. The spin bowling unit is as usual very strong in the hands of Hasaranga and mystery spinner Theekshana. The presence of leg spinner Vandersay provides options for team management depending on the rival team’s strengths and weaknesses. Recent fielding efforts by young Sri Lankans in UAE Asia Cup matches have been hugely appreciated by the commentators.
What is of immediate concern to Sri Lanka at this early stage is whether Sri Lanka will continue their winning streak and earn entry to the super 12 stage. The first hurdle is in the qualifying round. Though it appears it is a cakewalk for the Sri Lankan team, the great uncertainties of the game might have a field day and spoil the expectations. Sri Lank has a history of heavily defeating the associate countries in big stages and the current young team’s chances of earning entry to the super 12 are bright.
The first truly heavyweight clash of this expanded T20 World Cup format comes freighted with both history and subplots. A rematch of the 2010 World T20 final at Kensington Oval, the match pits Jos Buttler’s defending champions – who are aiming to become the first team to retain the trophy – against the Australian winning machine, victors at the 2021 edition and current world title-holders in Test and ODI cricket. And that’s before you throw in the Ashes for afters.
Already there is added pressure on England, after the rain in Bridgetown led to a share of the points in their opener against Scotland (and that having conceded 90 runs from 10 overs without taking a wicket in a tepid bowling display). Lose to their oldest rivals and it will leave their Super 8 prospects open to being waylaid by the perils of net run-rate calculations, or worse.
The Scotland match was the third abandonment in five suffered by England, after a rain-affected home series against Pakistan, which has clearly hampered their readiness for this campaign after almost six months without playing T20 together. It does not take much for a side to click in this format – and England looked in decent shape when they did get on the field against Pakistan – but Buttler will be anxious for things to go their way on Saturday, if only to avoid further questions referencing the team’s disastrous ODI World Cup defence last year.
Australia, under the laidback leadership of Mitchell Marsh would love nothing more than to add to the English sense of jeopardy – having helped bundle them out of the tournament in India on the way to taking the crown. Their head to head record is less impressive in T20 however, with England having won six of the last seven completed encounters, as well as that 2010 final.
Despite a wobble with the bat, Australia avoided mishap against Oman earlier in the week, the experience of David Warner and Marcus Stoinis shining through in difficult batting conditions. Surfaces in the Caribbean – not to mention those games staged in the USA – have already had teams scratching their heads; rather than the “slug-fest” England had prepared for, following a high-scoring tour of the Caribbean in December, it looks as if boxing smart may be the way to go.
Speaking of Warner, this could be the last time he faces up against England in national colours – and another match-winning contribution would likely reduce the chances of them meeting again in the knockouts. On the other side of the card is Jofra Archer, fresh from an emotional maiden outing at Kensington Oval and ready to take on Australia for the first time in any format since 2020. Can Mark Wood fire up England’s campaign, as he did during last summer’s Ashes? Will Pat Cummins be back to harass the old enemy once again? Seconds out, it’s almost time to rumble.
Cummins is set to return after being rested for the Oman game, which saw Mitchell Starc leave the field with cramp. Starc is understood to be fine and could keep his place – which would likely see Nathan Ellis miss out. Marsh is still not fit to bowl, with Australia likely to continue with the allrounder combination of Stoinis and Maxwell to give them cover.
Australia (probable XI): David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Josh Inglis (wk), Tim David, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis/Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
The one change England may consider is Reece Topley coming in for Wood, with the expectation that there will be some rotation among the seamers through the course of the tournament.
England (probable XI): Phil Salt, Jos Buttler (capt & wk), Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Reece Topley/Mark Wood
[Cricinfo]
Once is coincidence, twice is a clue, and three times is proof.
To paraphrase Agatha Christie, that is the narrative around South Africa’s meeting with Netherlands at this T20 World Cup.
The Dutch beat South Africa at the 2022 tournament and ended their semi-final hopes in a match where South Africa appeared to be sleep walking, and then beat them again at the 2023 ODI World Cup, where they exposed South Africa’s vulnerability in the chase. If they to do the treble, not only will Netherlands take the lead in Group D, but they will offer conclusive evidence of the threat they pose to Full Members, especially South Africa.
Of course, it will take some doing after South Africa’s opening performance against Sri Lanka, where they reduced their opposition to their lowest T20I total and chased it down in fairly straightforward fashion thanks to the most stable middle-order of their white-ball era. In Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller, South Africa have bankers and big-hitters and, for this match, they also have the advantage of experience. They’ve already played at Eisenhower Park, and have first-hand knowledge that run-scoring doesn’t come easily;Klassen said they are prepared to use their “cricket brains” and play “smarter cricket”.
But the conditions could be good news for Netherlands, who are not naturally a line-up of big hitters and build their innings on a foundation of turning ones into twos. In other words, they tend to take a slightly more conservative approach to batting, which may work well here, but they’ll be wary of the uneven bounce of the surface and will have to come up with plans to counterattack especially against South Africa’s seamers. Their own bowlers were exemplary in Dallas and will look to build on that performance against a line-up that will likely be more proactive than Nepal’s, but who they have managed to keep quiet not once, but twice in the past. Third time’s the charm, they say.
Anrich Nortje’s stunning return to form against Sri Lanka means South Africa may not have to tinker with the bowling combination, and Gerald Coetzee and Tabraiz Shamsi may have to wait their turns to get a game. The batting line-up should be unchanged, with no space for Ryan Rickelton yet.
South Africa: Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Aiden Markam, Tristan Stubbs, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Ottneil Baartman, Anrich Nortje
Conditions in New York may tempt Netherlands to include an extra seamer and they have Kyle Klein in their squad. But it could come at the expense of a shortened batting line-up and they may not want to risk that.
Netherlands: Michael Levitt, Max O’Dowd, Vikramjit Singh, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Scott Edwards (capt, wk), Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Logan van Beek, Tim Pringle, Paul van Meekeren, Vivian Kingma
[Cricinfo]
Nuwan Thushara’s last over brought Sri Lanka screaming back into the match,as he first bowled Rishad Hossain, and then nailed Taskin Ahmed in front of the stumps with a pinpoint swinging yorker. This left Bangladesh eight wickets down, with 12 runs still to get.
However, the experienced Mahmudullah was at the crease for Bangladesh, and despite some further nervy moments, pushed Bangladesh across the line off the last ball of the 19th over.
But this was a match chiefly decided by Bangladesh’s own outstanding bowling. Mustafizur Rahman was the best among them, using shorter lengths and his cutters efficiently, to claim figures of 3 for 17. Rishad Hossain’s three-for through the middle overs also kept Sri Lanka quiet.
Mustafizur was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s downward spiral through the middle overs, which culminated in a crash-and-burn end. Ultimately, their inability to find boundaries, or even rotate strike against good Bangladesh bowling resulted in their downfall. A score of 125 for 9 always seemed poor on a decent pitch, even if their bowlers made a match of it in the end.
Brief scores:
Bangladesh 125 for 8 in 19 overs (Towhid Hridoy 40, Litton Das 36; Dhanajaya de Silva 1-11, Nuwan Thushara 4-18, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32, Matheesha Pathirana 1-27) beat Sri Lanka124 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 47, Dhananjaya de Silva 21; Tanzim Hasan Sakib 1-24, Taskin Ahmed 2-25, Mustafizur Rahman 3-17, Rishad Hossain 3-22) by two wickets
[Cricinfo]
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