LEEDS, July 05 (Agencies): The game between in-form India and the out-of-form Sri Lanka at the Headingley Cricket Ground on Saturday might be a dead rubber of sorts on paper, but a lot is at stake if one digs in deep.
While India can keep chances of finishing the group stages of the 2019 World Cup as the top placed team alive, for Lanka it will be all about bowing out with a win against one of the tournament favourites.
Having struggled right through the tournament, this will be Lanka''s ultimate chance to redeem themselves when they take on Virat Kohli''s men at Headingley. More than the lack of ability, it has been a case of lack of consistency as the Lankan players have shown individual brilliance in phases.
For India, it will again be about cementing the fourth batsmen''s slot as they inch closer to the business end. While Rishabh Pant has been given the position with the bat, the others also need to pitch in and support his endeavour.
The bowling attack too, could wear a tricky look as there were talks of roping in Ravindra Jadeja in place of Dinesh Karthik for the last message. The rest of the bowlers pick themselves.
Squads: India: Rohit Sharma, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarwal, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Dinesh Karthik, Mohammed Shami, Rishabh Pant
Sri Lanka: Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), Avishka Fernando, Suranga Lakmal, Lasith Malinga, Angelo Mathews, Jeevan Mendis, Kusal Mendis (wk), Kusal Perera (wk), Thisara Perera, *Kasun Rajitha, Dhananjaya de Silva, Milinda Siriwardana, Lahiru Thirimanne, Isuru Udana, Jeffrey Vandersay
Meanwhile, South Africa, who will aim to end their ICC Men's World Cup 2019 campaign on a winning note, face a stiff challenge as they will be up against an in-form Australian side in the final game of the league stage at Old Trafford on Saturday.
Australia have been a dominant force in this World Cup, winning seven of the eight matches so far. While the openers have been giving good starts consistently, Alex Carey, the wicket-keeper batsman, has shown his class with a match-winning performance in the last game against New Zealand. The bowling unit, led by the ever reliable Mitchell Starc, has been further bolstered by the inclusion of Nathan Lyon in the playing XI. Victory against South Africa will ensure that they head into the semi-finals as the top ranked team in the points table.
South Africa, plagued by injuries and poor form of their key players, have had a disappointing World Cup. The four-time semi-finalists find themselves at the eighth position in the points table with two wins from eight matches. Chris Morris, Rassie van der Dussen and Imran Tahir were the only notable performers for a major part of the season. In the nine-wicket win over Sri Lanka, however, both skipper Faf du Plessis and Hashim Amla were at their fluent best.
Squads: Australia: Aaron Finch (c), David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, Peter Handscomb, Alex Carey (wk), Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Kane Richardson, Pat Cummins, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Adam Zampa, Nathan Lyon
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock (wk), Hashim Amla, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Chris Morris, Andile Phehlukwayo, JP Duminy, Dwaine Pretorius, Beuran Hendricks, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Imran Tahir, Tabraiz Shamsi
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
