England and Australia, unbeaten so far in the Super 12s, will look to maintain their winning streaks as they lock horns in a Group 1 fixture on Saturday evening in Dubai. Having won their two previous matches, both teams are placed well in the race for the semi-final. A win tonight will ease the path even further.
Interestingly, the last time these two teams met in the ICC T20 World Cup was way back in 2010 final, in which Paul Collingwood's team was crowned champions.
Returning to the ongoing tournament, England are yet to face a stiff challenge. They beat West Indies and Bangladesh comfortably in their two matches. In the last game, their power-packed top-order fired in spin-friendly conditions in Abu Dhabi, with Jason Roy scoring a quick-fire 38-ball 61.
Among bowlers, Chris Woakes, Tymal Mills and Moeen Ali have done well. Even part-timer Liam Livingstone chipped in with couple of crucial breakthroughs in the last game. Against Australia, we might see Eoin Morgan giving the ball to Adil Rashid inside the Powerplay keeping his past record against Aaron Finch's team in mind.
Australia, on the other hand, have been pushed by both South Africa and Sri Lanka. Their bowling has been more impressive than their batting, though David Warner scoring against the Sri Lankans must have come a sigh of relief.
In the previous game, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis were targeted by the opposition batters in the middle and death overs. It will be interesting to see whether Australia retain them or opt for the left-arm spin of Ashton Agar. However, with dew playing an important role in Dubai, it seems highly unlikely.
Likely XIs
England: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Tymal Mills
Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Marsh, Matthew Wade, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Fantasy tips
- Pack your team with top-order batters like Roy, Warner and Jos Buttler.
- Both teams are using their all-rounders to bowl the quota of their fifth bowler. Hence, likes of Moeen, Maxwell, Livingstone and Stoinis can be useful additions to your fantasy teams.
- Rashid has a good record against this Australian side. So, it will be a wise decision to have him in the XI.
Blitzpools Fantasy XI
Jos Buttler (vc), Jason Roy, David Warner, Steve Smith, Mooen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Glenn Maxwell (c), Marcus Stoinis, Chris Woakes, Adam Zampa, Adil Rashid