Saturday, January 15, 2011

Australia vs England - second T20 Preview -Highlights

The first match of the series was a nail biting thriller which England managed to win off the last ball. The defeat added to Australia's huge bag of disappointments. Much as they have throughout the tour, both teams go into the match - the second and final T20 - in contrasting form.

Australia have tried everything possible to get that elusive victory: Cameron White was named captain, Tim Paine was made his deputy, some new faces were introduced and veteran Brett Lee was brought back. However, neither the changes in personnel, nor the changes in leadership and format led to a change in Australia's fortunes. It almost seems as if the Aussies have forgotten how to win. The first T20 game depicted Australia's recent woes in more ways than one: Shane Watson continued his good form, the middle order collapsed, the bowlers leaked runs and Australia ended up losing the game. The loss was also their 5th consecutive defeat in the shortest format - they have lost all T20 matches since their famous World Cup semi final victory against Pakistan.




While everything seems to go wrong for the home team, the visitors are speeding away in the opposite direction. A comprehensive 3-1 win in the Ashes was followed by a record 8th consecutive victory in the T20 format. The bowlers, despite an initial onslaught by Shane Watson, did well to restrict Australia to a below par 157. Most of the top order batsmen, including new opener Ian Bell, chipped in with useful contributions to help England clinch the game. Paul Collingwood, who was out of sorts in the Tests, looked a completely different man as the leader of the team. Players like Ajmal Shahzad, Michael Yardy and Eoin Morgan, who didn't play a game in the Test series, showed no signs of rustiness and acclimatised to the conditions right away. But the team is not without problems. Steve Davies and Luke Wright lasted only 2 balls each. None of their batsmen could capitalize on good starts and it was left to the tail to see their side through.

Though the entire cricketing world is focused on 50 over games ahead of the world cup, both teams would look to gain the much needed winning momentum going into the ODI series. While everything seems dark for the Aussies, history suggests that it would be foolish to write them off. This team certainly has the potential to turn things around and prove history right. Australia has a formidable England side to battle. England on the other hand have two oppositions - Australia and complacence.
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