Ileana Sanchez
Dailysports's expert
Australia
Scotland
Australia and Scotland will play their final match in the first leg of the T20 Cricket World Cup on the night of 15-16 June CET. Dailysports analysts have prepared a prediction for this match for you.
Australia
The representative of Oceania is a dominator on the world cricket arena in the T20 format. Australia have won five of the last seven World Cups. As if confirming their status as one of the best teams on the planet, the Kangaroos have solved the question of getting to the next round ahead of schedule: Australia have three wins in three matches over Oman, England and Namibia. Therefore, the team will not solve any important tasks in the next game.
Surprisingly, this was the key fact on the eve of this game. There were several sensational statements from the Australian national team camp that they would like Scotland to get through to the next stage of the World Cup rather than England - another contender for the second place. For this to happen, Australia need to deliberately lose their next match. How realistic is that? Absolutely impossible to speculate.
Scotland
"Tartan Army" is considered to be a pretty tough team. However, even in their own region, Scotland is not at the top of the table. In the UK, the absolute dominance is with England, which at the current World Cup plays with the Scots in the same group. By coincidence, just the English may leave the tournament after the first stage, giving up a place in the Super 8 to their neighbours.
Scotland and England could not find out their relationship on the field: the game ended without a result due to rain, which started during the innings of the "tartan army". In the next two meetings Doug Watson's team, like a diligent student, proved to be stronger than Namibia and Oman. Thus, Scotland need a win over Australia or an England defeat to Nambia to qualify for the next stage. Both events look pretty fantastic. However, this is cricket where anything is possible.
Interesting facts and history of head-to-head matches
- Australia have not lost to anyone other than West Indies in the T20 format for eight consecutive matches.
- Scotland's highest achievement in T20 World Cup history is reaching the Super 12 in 2021, when the team actually finished twelfth.
Australia vs Scotland prediction
The situation on the eve of the game is ambiguous. Some players of the Australian national team declare about combat readiness, while others do not want to win. Scotland needs a victory in any case. But how ready is the team to sensationalise right now? I think that at least in their innings, the "tartan army" will do everything possible to cling on to a historic chance. That's why my bet is Scotland's individual total in the first six overs is over 42.5.
