FANTASY PREVIEW
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Australia: W W W W W
Bangladesh: W W L W W
Head to Head
Australia 6-4 Bangladesh
Last meeting: Australia beat Bangladesh by 8 wickets in Dubai, 2021 T20WC
Venue Details
Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound, Antigua
Average first innings score: 115 (four non rain-affected games in this T20WC)
Bat first / Bat second split: Team chasing has won 3 of the 5 games at this venue in this T20WC
Highest second-innings scores at the venue (in this T20WC): 176/6 (USA vs SA), 153/3 (SCO vs OMA), 84/3 (NAM vs ENG, 10-over game)
Pace vs spin split: Average 22.3 vs 24.4, Economy 8.3 vs 8.5, Percentage of wickets 66.7% vs 33.3%
Weather conditions
Antigua has seen some rain this week. The England vs Namibia clash at this venue was severely affected by rain. There is some rain forecast for June 20 (Thursday), but luckily for Australia and Bangladesh, showers are expected only in the morning, mainly between 7 AM and 11 AM. The weather is expected to clear by evening. That being said, we might still have an interruption or two. But considering there have been no washouts at this venue, Australia and Bangladesh have plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
Players to watch out for
Marcus Stoinis: Arguably the player of this T20WC 2024 so far. Stoinis has scored 156 runs at an average of 78.00 and a strike rate of 190.24 while taking 6 wickets at an average of 8.66 and an economy of 5.77. He’s made a game-defining impact in three of Australia’s four games and pretty much single-handedly won the Kangaroos’ previous clash against Scotland, in which they were in deep trouble at one point. He’s amid a remarkable batting streak: six consecutive 25+ scores in T20WCs. Bangladesh will have its task cut out against that of the big Western Australian.
Tanzim Hasan Sakib: The right-arm pacer has been one of Bangladesh’s MVPs in this T20WC so far. He’s taken 9 wickets at an average of 8.00 and an economy of 4.8 and has bowled an astounding 61 dots. In the Tigers’ previous clash against Nepal, he returned figures of 4-2-7-4, bowling a scarcely believable 21 dots in his 24-ball spell. If Bangladesh are to score an unlikely upset against the Kangaroos, they’ll need Tanzim to bamboozle the Aussie top-order with his seam movement up-front.
Travis Head: His performances have gone under the radar, but Travis Head has been having a solid T20WC so far, scoring 148 runs at an average of 49.33 and a strike rate of 157.44. Head’s last three scores in this T20WC read 34, 34* and 68. Against Scotland, he curbed his natural instincts and showcased his adaptability by dropping anchor. The game could be over before Bangladesh realizes if they do not manage to see the back of Head early.
Key Battles
Mustafizur Rahman vs Australia’s lower-order / finishers
Mustafizur Rahman has quite literally been unplayable at the death in this T20WC so far. The left-armer has bowled six overs in the 16-20 phase and has conceded 10 runs at an economy of 1.7. That’s right. 31 of the 36 balls Mustafizur has bowled at the death in this T20WC have been dots. His pace-off deliveries have been impossible to connect, let alone hit.
Australia’s middle-order has been impressive in this T20WC, but the Kangaroos could be in trouble if their batters don’t find a way to negate the Fizur threat at the death.
Cricket.com’s suggested Fantasy XI
Australia: David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (c), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Bangladesh: Tanzid Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto (c), Litton Das (wk), Shakib Al Hasan, Towhid Hridoy, Mahmudullah, Jaker Ali, Rishad Hossain, Taskin Ahmed, Tanzim Hasan Sakib, Mustafizur Rahman
Streaming and Telecast details
The match will begin at 6 AM IST (June 21) and be streamed and telecasted on Disney+ Hotstar and Star Sports.
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