Aussies face huge selection calls for Sri Lanka showdown

04 Oct 2024 Laura Jolly, in Dubai

Chamari Athapaththu has vowed her team will throw everything they have at Australia as Sri Lanka look to rebound from a shock loss

Australia face some of their biggest selection calls in recent memory as their T20 World Cup campaign finally gets underway against a wounded Sri Lanka already in 'do-or-die' mode.

The three-time defending champions have had to wait until day three of the tournament to take the field and they will do so at a venue they will set foot in for the first time just a couple of hours prior to the first ball.

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With no training session possible at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium ahead of Saturday, Australia instead gleaned all the intel they could from the first two games played at the ground on Thursday.

"It's going to be really important for us when we get there to assess (the conditions) pretty quickly and communicate as a squad what's working and what our best plan of attack will be," vice-captain Tahlia McGrath said in Dubai on Friday.

"It looks pretty low and slow and it looks like spin played a really big role in the two games yesterday.

"We've been talking individually in our skill groups about how we're going to combat that, and what the best plan of attack is for our group, and how we can still play a really attacking brand."

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Phoebe Litchfield looks set to return from a groin complaint after successfully completing two training sessions, while Australia will also mull injecting Grace Harris into the XI after the allrounder looked razor sharp in the nets after recovering from the calf issue that kept her out of the T20I against New Zealand last month.

They could also consider adding a fourth spinner to the XI – leg-spinner Alana King, although Harris also offers an option with her off-spin – after 22 wickets fell to spin in Sharjah on Thursday, compared to nine to pace.

"I think there’s always going to be a selection dilemma for us," McGrath said.

"You look at our 15 and every single player can play a role, and the talent there is enormous and we're lucky that no matter what the conditions are or whatever team is picked, that we'll play our role, and we'll have the team there to get the job done."

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Recent Asia Cup winners Sri Lanka had an early stumble in their opening match against Pakistan on Thursday, failing to chase 116 in Sharjah.

It was a significant setback for the team hoping to make semi-finals for the first time and a loss to Australia would make the path to the top four a difficult one, given the cut-throat nature of the 10-team tournament.

"They've been playing some really good cricket over the last 12 to 18 months, and they're a side that we haven't played a lot against," McGrath said.

"Our analysis meetings have had to be a little bit more deliberate than maybe some of the other sides we come up against ... and while Chamari Athapaththu is a standout player, they've got some other really important players in their side as well so we're going to have to be playing our best cricket."

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Speaking to media on Friday, Athapaththu expressed her disappointment at the first-up defeat.

However, she also hoped the 'backs to the wall' scenario would unlock a fearless approach from her team, adding they had learned a lot about how to handle the conditions.

"We have confidence, still we have belief," Athapaththu said.

"Now we know we have do-or-die games, we have to do or die, that's it.

"If we can play our best cricket tomorrow, I know we can beat any team ... the important thing is we have to play our fearless cricket.

"The wickets are very slow and low, no bounce on the wicket, so we have to play straight and it’s not easy to play big shots early so we have to take time to settle down."

2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Aussies face huge selection calls for Sri Lanka showdown

2024 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

Warm-up matches

Australia's Group A fixtures

Finals