Last Updated on 7 years by Charbel Coorey
England proved in the 1st ODI against Australia in Melbourne that they are one of the finest teams going around in ODI cricket. Led by the magnificent Jason Roy and consistent Joe Root, England became the first team ever successfully chase over 300 at the MCG, and has got Australia thinking, which makes this series a little more interesting now…
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Australia were hit hard, so much so that Steve Smith has said that “England’s tactics work for them, and it’s something we need to look at”, and David Warner speaking as if Australia were shocked. England went hard at Australia at the top, taking it to Mitchell Starc and Patrick Cummins, which fully showed Australia’s summer domination so far is over and England will enjoy the limited overs stuff. What a far cry from when England were last in Australia for an ODI campaign… the dreaded 2015 World Cup, which has turned out to be a true blessing for them.
What will be interesting to see is how Australia go about taking wickets. In the 1st ODI, I didn’t even feel Australia’s bowling was too bad in the early overs, it’s just that England were absolutely superb. Jason Roy, in particular, was a nightmare for Australia to deal with, punishing anything slightly full and then the same with anything short. How will Australia bowl to him this time, and how will JasonRoy back up his amazing performance? Australia now face a predicament where they have won just one of their last nine completed ODIs. It promises to be an interesting clash in Brisbane…
Key to an Australia win
Despite England possessing a handy ODI bowling attack, including extra pace and variety compared to their Test attack, I back Australia to continue to be in the runs. Considering Steve Smith and David Warner didn’t perform to their form in Melbourne, Australia still scored over 300, with Aaron Finch and Australia’s middle order strong.
However, Australia struggled with the ball, and a better performance with the ball is needed. What would be of hope to Australia, though, is the two early wickets they picked up in the England innings. Australia’s attack will be better for the experience of the first ODI, and it will be interesting to see how they respond.
Key to an England win
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| Joe Root was excellent, combining with Roy for a 221 run partnership |
Predicted teams:
Stats & Facts:
- Australia have won just one of their last nine completed ODIs.
- England have won four of the last five ODIs between the two teams.
- In the 1st ODI, Jason Roy scored the highest ever individual score (180) by an Englishman. This was also the highest ever score by a player at the MCG in an ODI.
- Joe Root in his last 35 ODIs: 1,870 runs at an average of 69.26.
- Mitchell Marsh is six runs away from 1,000 ODI runs.
- Liam Plunkett is one away from 100 ODI wickets.
Prediction:
This promises to be a high scoring game on a good batting pitch in warm conditions in Brisbane. I like England’s chances in this ODI because they have the bowlers to extract bounce off the pitch – I expect both Plunkett and Wood to bowl well, especially in the early stages. England’s batting at the moment in ODI cricket is super to watch, and with Cummins and Hazlewood to be missing, I think England’s batting will be a little too much for Australia. Watch out for Jason Roy again, and have a feeling Alex Hales will have a strong game, too.
England to win and go 2-0 up.
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