🏏ICC Men's T20I WC 2022: Super 12 - Group 1 - AUS vs IRE - 31/10/22🏏

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Super 12 - Group 1

Australia vs Ireland on 31/10/2022 at 1:30 PM IST at The Gabba, Brisbane

Australia must be on their guard against buoyant Ireland

The hosts will be comfortable favourites, but events recently at the MCG have shown that can matter for very little

At one point during Aaron Finch's lengthy stint in the nets at the Allan Border Field, he copped a thumping blow to his thigh. His loud bellow in pain though was met with laughter from some of his teammates, led by Glenn Maxwell and Steve Smith, stood not too far from the net. Finch though powered on, after a few choice comments for them, and if anything began striking the ball as well as he has in a while.

Smith entered the same net not long after and was struck on his right index finger right away, in fact off the first ball he faced from Andre Borovec with a sidearm. As he stood there wringing his hand in agony and trying to see if his finger was in harm's way, Finch couldn't help but hit back with a quip about the net in question being one designed for pain.

Smith thankfully was fit enough to have a long hit, which he broke up into two halves, the first more focused on just hitting balls and the second in the centre-wicket nets, more about trying and smashing it to all parts.

It was a similar theme for all the batters at Australia's optional-turned-full-fledged training session on a rather sunny morning in Brisbane, a day out from the crucial clash against Ireland. Tough going in the challenging nets on the side of the field and a lot of free-swinging of the bat on the centre-wicket. David Warner in fact was at it for nearly 2 hours. Not surprisingly Smith wasn't far behind.

In a way, the fact that Australia assembled for this training session en masse and made it an all-in practice session also told you how and where they see themselves placed in the Super 12s of the T20 World Cup. Not to forget the fact that they haven't been on a cricket ground since beating Sri Lanka in Perth in what feels like ages ago. Even the fast bowlers braced up to the heat and humidity of the Queensland air to run in full tilt and bowl at least for half hour each. It was like Australia were trying to dust off whatever negative energy that still remained from the thrashing they received from New Zealand to kick off their campaign. Along with the rustiness of not having got on to the field since their thrashing of Sri Lanka, courtesy that Marcus Stoinis assault. And as they left the Allan Border Field, after over three hours of intense training, you knew that they were as geared up as they have been for a while when it comes to T20I cricket.

The Irish had to be content with training at the Northern Suburbs ground, or the Ian Healy Oval, and they too arrived at full strength, like they tend to do. Their session though was dominated in the early phases about a bunch of them indulging in a game of touch rugby. And that went on for a good 40 minutes before they even picked up a cricket bat or ball. The Irish amazingly find themselves tied on points but with a better net run-rate than the Aussies. It's unfortunate that they couldn't build on their win over England against Afghanistan at the MCG. But they looked pretty confident of having their future in this World Cup in their own hands. And their mood, and expectations from Monday's clash against Australia at the Gabba could be summed up by a support staff member who went something to the effect of ,"Those who are calling our victories in this tournament as upsets haven't watched how well we've played over the last 12 months. Let them keep doing it, and we'll keep surprising them".

Pitch Report and Weather Forecast:

Brisbane along with Melbourne and Hobart has seen the maximum rain so far in this T20 World Cup. Rain has affected matches in all these three venues. MCG had both its games washed out on October 28 making the players and fans very frustrated. The AUS vs IRE match will be played at the Gabba from 1.30 am IST which is 6 pm local time on October 31. The weather is expected to be cloudy but warm on October 31 in Brisbane.

The temperature in the evening will be around 25 degrees in the evening with a slight possibility of rain. The pitch at the Gabba is one of the best in Australia for batting. It has an even pace and bounce which the bowlers can use to their advantage as dwell.

What to expect: A spotless sky and some warm weather is what everyone currently in Brisbane for the World Cup is grateful for, especially after some chilly and grim outings in other parts of the country. And that's what we expect to get for the game too. There is always bounce off the pitches at the Gabba at this time of the year. And the fast bowlers will enjoy bowling on it. There will be runs on offer like always at the Gabba and it'll be interesting to see at what point Australia or even Ireland start eyeing the net run-rate scenarios for each team.

The surface at The Gabba is expected to be a balanced one for this contest. The bowlers can get some seam movement early on with the ball in hand and the batters need to be very cautious initially. However, batting will get easier as the contest progresses.

will ireland again make miracle victory :)

Team Watch

Australia

Injured/Unavailable: Australia will have Matthew Wade and Adam Zampa ready after a Covid scare for both.

Tactics & Matchups:

Australia will look to come hard at the Irish with the new-ball. They were a little flat and had to rely on some Stoinis magic to see them home versus Sri Lanka. They would not want to leave it that late, and especially with a team like Ireland, who have the players and the skillsets to pose a credible threat to the Aussies. The batting for Australia meanwhile still needs some sorting but that has more to do with the specific role that gets defined for each of them.

Probable XI: Aaron Finch (c), David Warner, Mitch Marsh/Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

Ireland

Tactics & Matchups:

Ireland's strength has been the early impetus provided by Josh Little and Mark Adair and that's what Australia will try to disrupt. With the bat they still seem a little too dependent on the top 3 with Campher and Dockrell in good form too.

Probable XI: Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirnie (C), Lorcan Tucker (wk), Harry Tector, Curtis Campher, George Dockrell, Gareth Delany, Mark Adair, Fionn Hand, Barry McCarthy, Josh Little

In the spotlight

David Warner hasn't quite got going yet in the tournament with scores of 5 of 11, but he has had a magnificent run in T20Is dating right back to 2019 since when he has averaged 56.52 with a strike-rate of 144.35. He played a crucial role in Australia's progression in last year's World Cup where his rapid 89 off 56 balls against West Indies helped lift their net run rate. Don't rule out a similar impact this time.

Josh Little had a big impact against England - coming out as ESPNcricinfo's MVP - as he removed Jos Buttler and Alex Hales inside the powerplay. His left-arm angle could be vital again against Australia with the line of attack having often troubled Finch and also being a good option against Warner, whose lowest average against a style of bowling in T20Is comes against left-arm pace. And since 2020, the difference is even more stark with an average of just 14 against them and four dismissals, one every 13 deliveries faced.

Stats and trivia

Ireland's one previous international at the Gabba was at the 2015 ODI World Cup where they beat UAE by two wickets. From that game, Paul Stirling, Andy Balbirine and George Dockrell will likely be in this Ireland side.

There is an argument to be made for Kane Richardson replacing Pat Cummins, particularly with a focus on the death: this year, Richardson has 11 wickets at economy of 7.84 in the last five overs compare to Cummins' three wickets at an economy of 11.66

Since moving to No. 3, Lorcan Tucker has been a revelation for Ireland. He averages 37.92 with a strike-rate of 135.06 compared to 11.46 and 104.19 in other positions

T20I Head to Head: Australia 1-0 overall, last match coming during the 2012 World T20 in Sri Lanka

Quotes

"We have seen how damaging Ireland can be if you give them a sniff in a game. They have got some seriously talented players and some experience, especially at the top of the order. They are never a team you can take lightly. If the wicket has got anything in it they have got very good bowlers to maximise that as well."

Aaron Finch on the danger of Ireland

"I think we know if we play pretty much near our best that we're going to be able to compete with anybody here."

Gareth Delany on the channelling the confidence from the England victory

Thank you, Raji, for the thread and for tagging me. 🤗

Let us hope for watching an interesting match today.

A spotless sky and some warm weather is what everyone currently in Brisbane for the World Cup is grateful for, especially after some chilly and grim outings in other parts of the country. And that's what we expect to get for the game too. There is always bounce off the pitches at the Gabba at this time of the year. And the fast bowlers will enjoy bowling on it. There will be runs on offer like always at the Gabba and it'll be interesting to see at what point Australia or even Ireland start eyeing the net run-rate scenarios for each team.