Australia vs England 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup match preview: TV & streaming details, ticket information, free tips & prediction…
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A huge clash lies in store in the T20 World Cup at the Kensington Oval as Australia face off against England with both teams looking to put a marker down in the tournament with a win here against their arch rivals.
DATE & TIME: Saturday 8th June, 2024: USA (WST) – 10:00am / USA (CST) – 12:00pm / USA (EST) – 1:00pm / UK – 6:00pm / India - 10:30pm / South Africa – 7:00pm / Pakistan – 10:00pm / Bangladesh – 11:00pm / Sunday 9th June, 2024: Australia - 3:00am
VENUE: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados
WEATHER: 27-31c or 81-88° forecast with sunshine and cloudy intervals
HOW TO WATCH ON TV: USA – Willow TV / West Indies – ESPN Caribbean / UK – Sky Sports / South Africa – SuperSport / Pakistan – PTV Sports & TEN Sports / India – Star Sports / Bangladesh – Disney Star
HOW TO WATCH ONLINE: USA – Willow TV website / West Indies – ESPN Play Caribbean app / UK – Sky Go / South Africa – SuperSport app / Pakistan – Myco & Tamasha / India – Disney+Hotstar / Bangladesh – Disney+Hotstar / Australia – Amazon Prime Video
AUSTRALIA FORM: AUSSIES LOOK TO BUILD ON OPENING WIN
Australia cruised to an opening victory against Oman and while their total of 164/5 did not look overly impressive at the time, it has remained the highest total of the tournament at the time of writing so they will take confidence from that. There is however plenty to improve on and while this match will not define either team’s tournament in a relatively weak group, the Aussies would love nothing more than to beat England and put their progression under a little doubt.
LAST FIVE: LWWWW
ENGLAND FORM: GREATER PRESSURE ON ENGLAND AFTER OPENING WASHOUT
After their opening match against Scotland was washed out and the points were shared, England will be keen to avoid defeat here and leave themselves vulnerable with just a solitary after two games. Given their preparations for the tournament were affected by rain with two of their four matches against Pakistan being abandoned, they come into this match arguably lacking time in the middle. A match against their arch rivals will certainly give them focus however and they will be eager to hit the ground running.
LAST FIVE: AWAWNR
AUSTRALIA BETTING ANALYSIS
The Aussie batting line-up is looking as strong as ever but they will have lingering concerns over this truly abysmal run of form that Glenn Maxwell is currently in. It is surely a matter of time until he snaps out of this funk but confidence is low and he is desperate for an innings of some description. Aside from Maxi, the rest of the line-up down to Tim David at seven looks formidable and they will likely relish playing against England’s fast bowlers especially.
None of their bowlers have a particularly strong record against England and with the pitch conditions uncertain and questions over Mitchell Starc’s fitness too, there are no markets of interest there.
ENGLAND BETTING ANALYSIS
If there is one team that can match Australia’s batting firepower, it is England and their top seven is as dangerous as any in the tournament. They will be keen to see Jonny Bairstow and Harry Brook find some form early in this tournament but with Phil Salt, Jos Buttler and Will Jacks all coming off strong IPL displays, they will be confident of taking apart any bowling attack.
Phil Salt is a good option for top England batsman with strong recent form and a liking for pace bowling, he can score quickly and heavily for England whether they bat first or second. It is his opening partner Jos Buttler whose stats really jump off the page when it comes to playing against Australia. Five fifties in 15 T20 internationals with an average of 45.16 is remarkable in this format of the game, and expect him and Salt to get England off to a flyer.
AUSTRALIA VS ENGLAND EXPERT PREDICTION
While the head-to-head record between these two teams is relatively close with England winning 11 compared to Australia’s 10, it is England who have dominated in recent times winning six of their last seven completed meetings. That will give them heart coming into this match as they look to get their tournament up and running after the frustration of an opening washout.
Australia will be confident that their preparations have been better than England’s and that will only heighten their mood. They have one or two questions marks in the team with Mitch Starc suffering cramp last time out but Pat Cummins should return to the side. They will want to show they can beat Jos Buttler’s men and they will be fired up to do well here.
Our marginal preference is for England however to get a win here. While they have had some disruption in recent weeks to their preparations, they are a good matchup in this format to the Aussies and with Salt, Buttler and company in fine form, they can outscore Mitchell Marsh’s men.
AUSTRALIA VS ENGLAND TOP TIP: ENGLAND TO HAVE HIGHEST OPENING PARTNERSHIP