Last Updated on 6 years by Charbel Coorey
 |
| Image credit: Fantasy Cricket Tracker |
It is always fantastic to see lower ranked sides get an opportunity to express themselves.
Recently, Hong Kong highlighted their potential by nearly causing a boil over against India in the Asia Cup. Can UAE cause Australia any problems in home conditions in the only T20I?
A Monday afternoon T20I is interesting scheduling, and UAE will be out to make this game interesting. Hosting a strong Australia side is a fantastic opportunity to showcase their skills, and their more experienced players are vital to a competitive match. In the shortest format, can they put together periods of substance?
For Australia, it is an excellent opportunity to acclimatise to these conditions ahead of the T20Is against Pakistan. Most of the Test players have headed home, with the T20 specialists out to continue their promising showings in both T20I Tri-Series campaigns in 2018. They are expected to be too good, and will it prove to be the case?
P.S., looking to improve your game or replicate your heroes? Claim discounts on any of 700+ cricket items at onlinecricstore.com with a single code. Find out more here!
Key to a UAE win
Even as an Australian, a UAE win will bring out a smile.
Much depends on Shaiman Anwar and Rohan Musta with the bat for UAE. Anwar is their highest ever scorer in the format, scoring 747 runs in 26 matches, and Musta is their second highest with 411. UAE have been successful against PNG and in the ICC WT20 Asia A Qualifier this year, but Australia is a different beast, and UAE will need partnerships right through the innings to keep Australia working hard in the heat.
Also, home conditions could really help the UAE bowlers. The likes of Mohammad Naveed and Ahmed Raza will be tasked with keeping the pressure on the Aussie batsmen, and limiting the boundaries as much as possible. Can UAE build pressure through dots and force “get out of jail” shots from the Australia batsmen?
Key to an Australia win
At their best, Australia are a destructive T20 side, filled with power hitters.
Aaron Finch was simply superb in the Zimbabwe Tri-Series earlier this year, and D’Arcy Short is coming off a double century in the Australian one day domestic tournament. Add the likes of Glenn Maxwell and Chris Lynn, and Australia possess a core batting group that can look to potentially all four T20I matches on this tour.
Also, Australia’s attack has a mix of fire and guile to keep the UAE batsmen honest. Billy Stanlake at the top will be key – can he snaffle early wickets or will the UAE batsmen enjoy his extra pace? What impact can Nathan Coulter-Nile have in his quest to stay injury free, and AJ Tye as proven wicket taker in this format? In Adam Zampa, Nathan Lyon and Ashton Agar, Australia also have three decent spin options to choose from to continue building the pressure on UAE in those middle overs.
Possible XIs
UAE possible XI: 1. Rohan Mustafa (c), 2. Ashfaq Ahmed, 3. Chirag Suri, 4. Rameez Shahzad, 5. Shaiman Anwar, 6. Ahmed Raza, 7. Imran Haider, 8. Mohammad Naveed, 9. Amir Hayat, 10. Ghulam Shabir, 11. Zahoor Khan
Australia possible XI: 1. Aaron Finch (c), 2. D’Arcy Short, 3. Chris Lynn, 4. Glenn Maxwell, 5 Ben McDermott, 6. Mitch Marsh, 7. Alex Carey (wk), 8. Ashton Agar, 9. Andrew Tye, 10. Adam Zampa, 11. Billy Stanlake
Stats and Facts
- This is the first ever meeting between UAE and Australia in T20Is.
- Australia’s last T20I assignment was the Tri-Series loss against Pakistan in Zimbabwe.
- UAE’s last T20I assignment was a 3-0 win over PNG at home in April.
Prediction
Expect Australia to have too much experience and class, but hoping for a good showing from UAE on an exciting day for the team.
Thanks for reading!
P.S.,
looking to improve your game or replicate your heroes? Claim discounts on any of 700+ cricket items at onlinecricstore.com with a
single code! Find out more
here!
