Trivandrum: An Australia-New Zealand clash is always a big occasion and Ireland make their debut in this year’s World Cup with a tough match against Bangladesh.
If the prestige of the World Cup was not reason enough, then putting the Chappell-Hadlee trophy on the line should definitely reinvigorate one of the great rivalries in cricket when Trans-Tasman neighbours Australia and New Zealand clash in a Group A match in Nagpur.
Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket have taken the bizarre decision to contest the annual bilateral series during this one-off meeting as both sides do not have any other vacancy during the year to face each other. This would mean that Ricky Ponting’s men would be defending the trophy they won in New Zealand during 2009-10.
With the placid deck in Nagpur having already given us the first memorable match in the tournament between England and the Netherlands, all the factors are in place for another cracker. With this being a day game, dew will not be a factor to contend with and that should ensure that the better team comes out on top on the day.
Both teams have gotten off to rollicking starts in the event – New Zealand convincingly thrashing Kenya by 10 wickets and Australia recording a resounding 91-run win over Zimbabwe. Whatever the result of this game, both sides will still fancy their chances of progression to the quarterfinals, but there is a lot more than pride at stake for either team.
The Kiwis have been rocked by the news of a devastating earthquake in Christchurch during the week, and even though none of the players have had any family casualties, they will be relishing the prospect of providing some relief for their countrymen with a beating of the Kangaroos. Indeed, the Australian camp is very much aware of the fact that the Black Caps could be a dangerous lot with this additional factor egging them on.
Both teams have a few unanswered questions in terms of their squad depth. Australia got off to a sluggish start against Zimbabwe and none of the batsmen could really step up the scoring rate even towards the end. For New Zealand, the middle-order has been known to be rather suspect in subcontinent conditions and could come under the scanner against a solid Aussie pace attack.
The match should make for interesting viewing but in the end, I would think the result will come down to two things: How the Aussie batsmen play Daniel Vettori and how the Kiwi openers tackle Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson (and Shaun Tait if he plays). Whichever set of batsmen manage to do the better of the two; their side should be on course for the win.
The day-night match of the day pits the two giant-killers of the 2007 World Cup, Bangladesh and Ireland, against each other. After the hiding at the hands of India in their first Group B match, the Bangla Tigers will have a point to prove. Mohammad Ashraful should return to the side for them and will provide some much needed dynamism in their batting.
But Ireland are a dangerous side and somewhere down the line in this competition, they are bound to spring a surprise. The 2007 Pakistan side will testify to the fighting spirit that the Irish have. In opener Ed Joyce, bowlers Trent Johnston and Boyd Rankin, all-rounder Kevin O’Brien and his brother, the wicketkeeper-batsman Niall O’Brien, they have some classy players.
But in this particular encounter, I would expect the Bangladesh spinners to really put a stranglehold on the Irish batsman and come out with the win. Bangladesh should play to their strengths and their biggest plus is the abundance of economical, quality spinners.
If the prestige of the World Cup was not reason enough, then putting the Chappell-Hadlee trophy on the line should definitely reinvigorate one of the great rivalries in cricket when Trans-Tasman neighbours Australia and New Zealand clash in a Group A match in Nagpur.
Cricket Australia and New Zealand Cricket have taken the bizarre decision to contest the annual bilateral series during this one-off meeting as both sides do not have any other vacancy during the year to face each other. This would mean that Ricky Ponting’s men would be defending the trophy they won in New Zealand during 2009-10.
With the placid deck in Nagpur having already given us the first memorable match in the tournament between England and the Netherlands, all the factors are in place for another cracker. With this being a day game, dew will not be a factor to contend with and that should ensure that the better team comes out on top on the day.
Both teams have gotten off to rollicking starts in the event – New Zealand convincingly thrashing Kenya by 10 wickets and Australia recording a resounding 91-run win over Zimbabwe. Whatever the result of this game, both sides will still fancy their chances of progression to the quarterfinals, but there is a lot more than pride at stake for either team.
The Kiwis have been rocked by the news of a devastating earthquake in Christchurch during the week, and even though none of the players have had any family casualties, they will be relishing the prospect of providing some relief for their countrymen with a beating of the Kangaroos. Indeed, the Australian camp is very much aware of the fact that the Black Caps could be a dangerous lot with this additional factor egging them on.
Both teams have a few unanswered questions in terms of their squad depth. Australia got off to a sluggish start against Zimbabwe and none of the batsmen could really step up the scoring rate even towards the end. For New Zealand, the middle-order has been known to be rather suspect in subcontinent conditions and could come under the scanner against a solid Aussie pace attack.
The match should make for interesting viewing but in the end, I would think the result will come down to two things: How the Aussie batsmen play Daniel Vettori and how the Kiwi openers tackle Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson (and Shaun Tait if he plays). Whichever set of batsmen manage to do the better of the two; their side should be on course for the win.
The day-night match of the day pits the two giant-killers of the 2007 World Cup, Bangladesh and Ireland, against each other. After the hiding at the hands of India in their first Group B match, the Bangla Tigers will have a point to prove. Mohammad Ashraful should return to the side for them and will provide some much needed dynamism in their batting.
But Ireland are a dangerous side and somewhere down the line in this competition, they are bound to spring a surprise. The 2007 Pakistan side will testify to the fighting spirit that the Irish have. In opener Ed Joyce, bowlers Trent Johnston and Boyd Rankin, all-rounder Kevin O’Brien and his brother, the wicketkeeper-batsman Niall O’Brien, they have some classy players.
But in this particular encounter, I would expect the Bangladesh spinners to really put a stranglehold on the Irish batsman and come out with the win. Bangladesh should play to their strengths and their biggest plus is the abundance of economical, quality spinners.
Even though the ploy of bowling first spectacularly backfired on Shakib al Hasan in the match against India, I feel he should do the same if he wins the toss. The Irish will find the likes of Abdur Razzak, Shakib himself and Mahmadullah, a lot more difficult to get away than the Indians did.
Prediction: Australia to retain the Chappell-Hadlee trophy with a win and Bangladesh to put the misery of the defeat against India behind them.
Prediction: Australia to retain the Chappell-Hadlee trophy with a win and Bangladesh to put the misery of the defeat against India behind them.
