Australia vs Ireland preview

Posted on | April 13, 2007 | No Comments

Australia will aim to take sole lead at the top of the super eight table when they play minnows Ireland at the Kensington Oval.

The Aussies are tied on points with the Kiwis, but are ahead of their Trans Tasman rivals on net run rate. A win here will see them zoom ahead of the rest, and given the way they have been playing, a win for John Buchanan’s side looks the most likely possibility. They have beaten England, Bangladesh and West Indies without breaking a sweat and look a different team from the one which lost five in a row before coming to the Carribean. The aura of invincibility seems to have returned, and if the form of Matthew Hayden is anything to go by, the Irish will be more than happy to leave the field early. The worrying problem for Australia will be the lack of batting practice and form for Andrew Symonds and Mike Hussey respectively. Hussey hasn’t got many runs under his belt, and sending him in early could help get a big century. The Kensington Oval does assist pacers and Shaun Tait will be licking his lips with glee.

The Irish weren’t supposed to be here in the first place, but an upset win over Pakistan and a draw against Zimbabwe saw them through. The super eights haven’t been easy- with three losses against South Africa, England and New Zealand. Ireland fought well in those games, but the lack of exposure and experience showed when they needed those qualities the most. The Irish have loads of lefties in their batting order, and only Niall O’ Brien has showed some sense of consistency. The rest have produced the one off knock, or haven’t delivered the goods at all. The Irish have three players of Aussie origin in their ranks- Captain Trent Johnston, opener Jeremy Bray and bowler Dave Langford Smith. The bowlers- Smith and Rankin in particular will have to ensure that Gilchrist and Ponting don’t get off to a rocking start, otherwise the Irish bowlers will need to be mentally prepared to see the runs against their names.

This one has Australia written all over it. Ireland might be competitive, but at the end of the day, 2 points is what Australia will get. Mike Hussey to get into some form with Hayden and Gilly, and Tait and Bracken to rock the Irish

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