T20 World Cup 2021: "England and Australia are joint second-favourites for the tournament" - England skipper Eoin Morgan
England skipper Eoin Morgan believes his English team and the Australian side are the joint second favorites for the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021, behind India. England will play their old rivals Australia in Match 26 of the tournament on October 30 in Dubai.
The two Group 1 teams have started their T20 World Cup campaign on a high, with both winning their first two encounters. England comprehensively beat defending champions West Indies by six wickets. They followed it up with another impressive victory against Bangladesh.
The Aussies, on the other hand, defeated South Africa in the opening fixture of the Super 12s. They then came out on top against Sri Lanka in Dubai.
England white-ball captain Eoin Morgan has braced himself for a stern test against Australia. The 35-year-old believes the Australian challenge will be one of the most difficult for his side in the tournament. According to SkySports, Morgan said:
""It's probably going to be one of our most difficult games. Australia are a very strong side - they've won two out of two, much like us - and have started well. Coming into the tournament, they'll probably be considered joint second favorites, along with us. They're a side that we know pretty well - we've played against them a lot over a number of years."
The two teams have met twice in the ICC T20 World Cup, with both sides pocketing one win each.
"We'll make a call on them tomorrow" - England skipper Eoin Morgan on injured Mark Wood and Tom Curran
After two more than convincing bowling displays by the English unit, Morgan is unlikely to make any changes to his starting lineup. However, they play Sri Lanka just 48 hours after their clash against Australia. This could make Morgan shuffle his bowlers to keep them afresh.
England speedster Mark Wood, who was sidelined after having an injection in his left knee, is most likely to feature for his side against the Lankan team. Tom Curran, the reserve seamer, has also been sitting out with a knee injury and will not play on Saturday.
When asked about the update on the pace duo, Morgan said:
"They're progressing really well. Where we were before the first game, they've come on a long way. We're going to make a call on that tomorrow to see how training is and then tomorrow we'll make a call on them," Morgan said.
Both England and Australia sit on four points in their Group 1 of Super 12s, with England on top with a better net run rate. Whoever prevails in Dubai on Saturday (October 30) will take a massive stride towards sealing a semi-final place and will likely top the group.