Champions Trophy 2013: Defending Champions in must win situation
Date – 12th June 2013
Time – 3.00 p.m (IST)
Australia’s top order batsmen should put up a better show against New Zealand
Brendon McCullum would have been satisfied with New Zealand’s performance in their first match as their bowlers were instrumental in New Zealand clinching the first match against Sri Lanka. New Zealand seamers exploited the conditions perfectly and McCullum would be hoping that his boys can replicate the same performance against Australia.
New Zealand have perfect squad for the conditions. They have three frontline seamers to exploit the conditions and have four quality batsmen to tackle the swing. Tim Southee, Kyle Mills and McLennan have bowled extremely well in the Natwest ODI series against England. They replicated the same performance against Sri Lanka in the Champions Trophy as they rolled up Sri Lanka for a mere 139. Nathan McCullum too played an important role with the ball as he scalped couple of wickets in the middle overs which had Sri Lanka on the backfoot. Brendon McCullum has used Nathan McCullum effectively and if he continues his good work, then New Zealand would certainly have their noses ahead.
The match is scheduled at Birmingham. The wicket at Birmingham is expected to be dry and therefore New Zealand batsmen would find it somewhat easy at this wicket. The top order has been in fine form for New Zealand and hence New Zealand should not find it difficult against Australia.
Australia, on the other hand, have a few injury concerns. Michael Clarke has been ruled out of the match against New Zealand and therefore George Bailey will lead the side. The batting has been a major concern for Australia after the retirement of their stalwarts. However, they have a dominant pace-attack that can pose threats to even world’s greatest batsmen on display. Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson will hold the key with the new-ball. If Australia’s batsmen can strike form, then New Zealand’s bowling would indeed be tested.
Pitch and Conditions
The wicket at Birmingham is expected to be dry , but there is possibility of showers on Wednesday. So, toss will play a critical role.
Team news
Michael Clarke has been ruled out of the match. So, Australia are likely to stick with same combination that played against England.
New Zealand too are likely to stick with the same combination.
Watch out for:
Australia’s top order batsmen: Australia’s top order batsmen haven’t performed against high-quality bowling attack. Perhaps this would be the right time as Australia desperately needs a win to keep their hopes alive in the tournament. Therefore, Australia’s top three batsmen will be holding the key against New Zealand.
Brendon McCullum’s captaincy: He has been an remarkable captain for New Zealand. He has shuffled his bowlers frequently and kept the opposition batsmen in check. If he can continue his good work as captain, then New Zealand would have bright chance of winning the match against Australia.
Quotes
All their top order will be feeling the heat a little bit to not only win the game but also hold their spot in the team. If we can take advantage of that I’m sure it will bode well for us in those pressure situations.” Kyle Mills is looking to exploit the weakness of Australia’s top order.