What a couple of matches we had yesterday. Sri Lanka pulled off a brilliant chase against New Zealand, comfortably hunting down 151 to register their first win of the tournament and hand the defending champions a second consecutive defeat.
In the other game, England continued their strong start to the World Cup by beating Ireland. To Ireland’s credit, they bowled really well and managed to reduce the hosts to 119/6, but 119 was never going to be a daunting target. England chased it down comfortably in just 17.3 overs to make it two wins from two matches.
With those results, Sri Lanka have kickstarted their campaign in style, while England continue to look like one of the teams to beat in this tournament.
Today, we have yet another exciting Triple-Header ahead of us, with three intriguing matches lined up as the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup continues. And to kick things off, we have the six-time Women’s T20 World Cup champions, Australia, taking on Bangladesh at Headingley in Leeds.
Australia will be looking to continue their strong start to the tournament and remind everyone why they remain one of the most successful teams in the history of women’s cricket. Bangladesh, meanwhile, will be hoping to cause a major upset and strengthen their chances of progressing further in the competition.
The next two matches are exciting as well, but we’ll get to those later. For now, all eyes are on Headingley as the Women in Yellow begin another chapter in their pursuit of a seventh T20 World Cup title.
Expected Playing 11:
Australia
- Beth Mooney (WK)
- Georgia Voll
- Phoebe Litchfield
- Elyse Perry
- Ash Gardener
- Georgia Wareham
- Annabel Sutherland
- Nicola Carey
- Sophie Molineux (C)
- Kim Garth
- Alana King
Bangladesh:
- Dilara Akter
- Juairiya Ferdous
- Sobhana Mostary
- Nigar Sultana (C & WK)
- Shorna Akter
- Sharmin Akhter
- Ritu Moni
- Rabeya Khan
- Marufa Akter
- Fariha Trisna
- Sanjida Akter Meghla
Head to Head:
| Matches- | 8 |
| Australia Won- | 8 |
| Bangladesh Won- | 0 |
| No Result- | 0 |
Pitch and Weather Conditions:
There’s some rain forecast for Wednesday morning at Headingley, which could impact the opening game, though the second fixture is expected to be less affected. The ground has hosted only one women’s T20I so far, in which England posted 176 batting first in 2024 against Pakistan. It’s expected to be another batting-friendly surface with a fast outfield, although the morning conditions could offer the seamers some help early on.
In Birmingham, there is a chance of rain later in the afternoon, but the forecast suggests clear skies for most of the evening. Teams batting first have won two out of the three games at the venue this World Cup. While batters have enjoyed value for their shots, the surface has also offered assistance to the spinners.
-ESPN CricInfo
Prediction:
We’re going to back Australia in this match. Both teams are coming into this game on the back of strong starts to their World Cup campaigns, but Australia remain the favourites. Given their dominance over Bangladesh in the head-to-head record, we’re predicting that record will extend to 9-0.
Of course, upsets are part of sport, and Bangladesh certainly have the talent to make this a competitive contest. But if they’re going to pull off one of the biggest shocks of the tournament, they’ll need to play at an exceptionally high level against a side that has won six Women’s T20 World Cup titles and knows exactly how to handle the pressure of major tournaments.
There’s also an extra layer of motivation for Bangladesh. The men’s team recently defeated Australia in an ODI series, and now the women have an opportunity to make a statement of their own on the world stage. It won’t be easy, but if they’re going to challenge the Aussies, they’ll need to produce their very best cricket.
For now, though, we’re backing Australia to continue their strong start and pick up another important victory.
If you want to see Match 1 of the triple header we have today, then tune into JioHotstar at 3:00 PM IST, if you live in UK, then tune into Sky Sports Cricket at 10:30 AM BST.
Until next time!
Thank you.
SlogVlog 