Stalled Sri Lanka must stand up to Australia's might
Rain has followed the Sri Lankans around the World Cup but the forecast is better in London, where the main challenge will be their batting
The Preview by Daniel Brettig
14-Jun-2019
Big picture
If Sri Lanka's chances of progressing to the semi-finals of the World Cup are slightly better than the one in a million offered to Lloyd Christmas by Mary Swanson in Dumb and Dumber, it's not by much. But just as Lloyd replied with a goggle-eyed "So you're telling me there's a chance?", so too must Dimuth Karunaratne's men push on against an Australian side that, while not firing on anything like all their available cylinders, are comfortably ensconced in the race for the tournament's knockouts.
To progress, Sri Lanka will need to do it the hard way with games against England, South Africa, India and West Indies still to come after Saturday's outing. For Australia, the equation is more likely to require three wins from their remaining five fixtures.
At the same time Australia will be chasing improvement in terms of performance and also balance, having looked so far like a collection of jigsaw puzzle pieces with either one too few to complete the picture, or an abundance of pieces that won't fit the remaining gaps. Chief among these are Usman Khawaja and Shaun Marsh in the middle order, while the bowling attack, too, has a significant lack of depth once Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins are dealt with.
Sri Lanka, though, have more fundamental issues, needing somehow to find the collective confidence to get into a position to win. Their two completed matches feel an age ago when they were bowled out for 136 by New Zealand and 201 by Afghanistan. However, they have gained two points from washouts, and a victory over Australia would help provide the type of critical momentum required for the sort of unlikely progression that Lloyd Christmas had so desired.
Form guide
(Last five completed matches, most recent first)
Australia WLWWW
Sri Lanka WLWLL
Sri Lanka WLWLL
In the spotlight
Against Pakistan, Glenn Maxwell showed off his skills - namely a rare combination of brutality and precision against spin - but also his drawbacks, beaten easily by pace when Sarfaraz Ahmed deigned to challenge him with it. Between the coach Justin Langer and his assistant Ricky Ponting, there appears a determination to ensure Maxwell is given the best opportunity to be a match-winner for Australia, more so after they attracted plenty of derision for holding him back too late in their chase against India. In 2015, Maxwell clattered the Sri Lankans for a brilliant and tournament-shaping century, just at the moment when the Australians were trying to shore up their place in the quarter-finals. The Oval and a less confident Sri Lankan side offer the chance to Maxwell to get his tournament going.
Australia's players have never forgotten Kusal Mendis after his match and arguably series-winning innings against them in a Test match in Kandy in 2016. It was Mendis' breakout performance, but he did not fare as well against Australia in subsequent innings, not topping 42 in four Test innings down under earlier this year. Nevertheless a couple of ODI half-centuries against them in 2016 and also a wasted start in their warm-up match in Southampton ahead of the World Cup have demonstrated that Mendis has the skill and nerve to build Sri Lanka's innings from the middle.
Team news
Nuwan Pradeep, who suffered a blow to his bowling hand while training and missed the game against Bangladesh, has returned to training. Whether he is match fit or not will be assessed later. The good news for Sri Lanka is that Lasith Malinga is on his way back to England after attending his mother-in-law's funeral, and will join the team in time for the game. If Malinga is ready for action, Sri Lanka might not want to risk playing Pradeep.
Sri Lanka (possible) 1 Kusal Perera, 2 Dimuth Karunaratne (capt), 3 Lahiru Thirimanne 4, Angelo Mathews, 5 Kusal Mendis, 6 Dhananjaya de Silva, 7 Thisara Perara, 8 Isuru Udana, 9 Jeevan Mendis, 10 Suranga Lakmal, 11 Lasith Malinga
With Stoinis still injured, will Australia need Steve Smith's bowling against Sri Lanka tomorrow?#CWC19 #AUSvSL pic.twitter.com/hZru4UIGTK
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) June 14, 2019
Australia are likely to take the field with four specialist bowlers, with Marcus Stoinis still injured but not yet replaced in the squad by Mitchell Marsh. Aaron Finch suggested that they will stick to the four-pacer plan, and Finch and Smith, who had a decent bowl in the nets on the eve of the game, are expected to help Maxwell out as the fifth bowler, providing ten overs of spin.
Australia (possible) 1 Aaron Finch (capt), 2 David Warner, 3 Usman Khawaja, 4 Steven Smith, 5 Shaun Marsh, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Alex Carey (wk), 8 Nathan Coulter-Nile, 9 Pat Cummins, 10 Mitchell Starc, 11 Kane Richardson
Pitch and conditions
The Oval surface has thus far been on the slow, holding side, although this will be a fresh pitch. London's weather forecast is for periods of clouds amid sunshine, but mercifully not much rain.
Strategy punt
Stats and trivia
Quotes
"I think he's always been a competitive beast. He loves the challenge, he loves the contest. I've never seen anything different since he was in the Under-19s, [as] an 18-year-old he used to love it. That's what the greats do, that's what the champions do. They love the contest. He loves the contest."
Australia coach Justin Langer on Pat Cummins.
Australia coach Justin Langer on Pat Cummins.
"We are a team with limited talent. If you compare us with a lot of other sides, we have major limitations. For example, the India side has someone who hits a hundred virtually in every match. In our team, we've only had one or two centurions all year."
Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne is under no illusions as to the strength of his team.
Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne is under no illusions as to the strength of his team.
Daniel Brettig is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @danbrettig