T20 World Cup: Old foes Australia and England in MCG showdown

Match 1

Ireland’s shock win over England the other night has left Group 1 dripping with delicious suspense. Five of the six teams in this cluster are level on points. Ireland, among the minnows in the tournament, could push Australia, England and New Zealand really hard for a place in the semis if they beat Afghanistan.

The Afghans are bottom of the heap, but a point from the rain-marred game against New Zealand could become a lifeline if they suddenly hit match-winning form in the remaining matches, and other results go topsy-turvy.

Match 2

England vs Australia, the second biggest contest in the tournament after India vs Pakistan, holds out promise of an epic contest. While defending champions Australia recovered swiftly and smartly from an 89-run thrashing by New Zealand, England, rated favourites to win this time, stumbled badly in their second match after a facile win over Afghanistan.

Rain was only a minor factor in the setback against Ireland. The major one was England’s ill-planned run chase with inclement weather always a threat. The batting approach was cocky, and the batting order was thoughtless, rather than astute, in pacing the innings with rain around. In the event, England were left to rue their tactics.

While England still look the best team in the tournament on paper, tepid performances of Jos Buttler and star all-rounder Ben Stokes has become a concern.

For the Aussies, David Warner is still searching for a big knock. But Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis have roared back into prime form, and the pace trio of Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins looked sharp and probing against Sri Lanka.

Difficult to predict a winner in the match, but for the loser, it might well signal time to start packing the bags!

> Ireland vs Afghanistan, 28 October, Melbourne, 8 am (UAE Time)

The Gamechangers

Paul Stirling, George Dockrell, Josh Little, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rashid Khan

> Australia vs England, 28 October, Melbourne, 12 pm (UAE Time)

The Gamechangers

Glenn Maxwell, Josh Hazlewood, Marcus Stoinis, Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone