After New Zealand eliminated England in a thriller of a semi-final in Abu Dhabi, it is now turn for Pakistan and Australia to live up to the expectations in the second semi-final in Dubai on Thursday. A win will take either of them to their first T20 World Cup final in over a decade.
In this edition, Australia have done better than most had expected them to. They won four out five matches in the Super 12s. In most of their matches, they were tested to their core. Despite not setting the stage on fire like the Australian teams of the earlier era, Aaron Finch & co. have come up with clinical performances at the right moment.
Babar Azam and his talented men, on the other hand, are the only unbeaten side of the edition. Their bowlers have consistently restricted oppositions to low scores, their openers have laid solid platforms, and their middle order has exploded.
Mohammad Rizwan and Shoaib Malik missed Wednesday’s pre-match training session due to mild flu, but the team management expects them to be fit for the game.
Likely XIs
Pakistan: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Imad Wasim, Shadab Khan, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Shah Afridi
Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Fantasy tips:
- Dew is expected to play a huge role in Dubai. Back the batters of the chasing side.
- Pick both wrist spinners, Zampa and Shadab.
- Starc and Afridi hold the key with the new ball for their respective teams.