Australia and South Africa are ready to face off in match 45 during the 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in Manchester on Saturday.
The game is an important one for the Kangaroos who are playing to cement their top spot on the league table and a win can assure them that they will face fourth-place New Zealand in the semi-finals, that too at the same venue.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of captain Aaron Finch, veteran opener David Warner, in-form Usman Khawaja and former skipper Steven Smith to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jason Behrendorff and Nathan Lyon to produce timely breakthroughs. Veteran all-rounder Glenn Maxwell might miss the match as he has suffered an injury during a net session on Friday.
On the other hand, for South Africa, the game is all about playing for pride as they will look to finish the tournament on a high. In the batting department, the team will be relying on the like of captain Faf du Plessis, wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock and young Rassie van der Dussen to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir to produce timely breakthroughs.
Old Trafford in Manchester will be used as the venue for the contest, which will be
Australia and South Africa are ready to face off in match 45 during the 2019 International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup in Manchester on Saturday.
The game is an important one for the Kangaroos who are playing to cement their top spot on the league table and a win can assure them that they will face fourth-place New Zealand in the semi-finals, that too at the same venue.
In the batting department, the team will be relying on the likes of captain Aaron Finch, veteran opener David Warner, in-form Usman Khawaja and former skipper Steven Smith to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jason Behrendorff and Nathan Lyon to produce timely breakthroughs. Veteran all-rounder Glenn Maxwell might miss the match as he has suffered an injury during a net session on Friday.
On the other hand, for South Africa, the game is all about playing for pride as they will look to finish the tournament on a high. In the batting department, the team will be relying on the like of captain Faf du Plessis, wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock and young Rassie van der Dussen to score bulk of the runs, whereas on the bowling front, the onus will be on Andile Phehlukwayo, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada and Imran Tahir to produce timely breakthroughs.
Old Trafford in Manchester will be used as the venue for the contest, which will be hosting its 51st ODI on Saturday. In the previous match at the venue, it was India who thrashed West Indies by 125 runs earlier in the competition, where pitch became extremely tough to bat on in the second-half.
Key players:
Batsman: Usman Khawaja (8.5 Cr)
Usman Khawaja is having a good tournament with the bat in hand for the team. The left-hander has scored 298 runs in eight innings at an average of 37.25 and with a strike-rate of 86.62, which included two half-centuries.
Wicketkeeper: Quinton de Kock (9.5 Cr)
Quinton de Kock is having a decent tournament with the bat in hand. The left-hander is the second-highest run-getter for the Proteas with 253 runs at an average of 36.14 and with a strike-rate of 84.33, which included two half-centuries.
All-rounder: Andile Phehlukwayo (9 Cr)
Andile Phehlukwayo is having a good tournament with both bat and ball for the Proteas. The 23-year-old has scored 129 runs at an average of 32.25 and with a strike-rate of 84.31. That's not it as he also has nine wickets to his name at a strike-rate of 39.30.
Bowler: Mitchell Starc (9.5 Cr)
Mitchell Starc is having an excellent tournament with the ball in hand. The left-arm pacer is the leading wicket-taker in the competition with 24 scalps in just eight matches at an outstanding strike-rate of 18.50 and with an average of 15.54.
Expected lineups:
Australia:
David Warner, Aaron Finch (captain), Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey (wicketkeeper), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Jason Behrendorff
South Africa:
Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper), Hashim Amla, Aiden Markram, Faf du Plessis (captain), Rassie van der Dussen, JP Duminy, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada, Imran Tahir
