T20 WC: England win toss, opt to bowl first against Australia
Jun 08, 2024
Bridgetown [Barbados], June 8 : England skipper Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to bowl first against Australia in their ICC T20 World Cup match at Bridgetown, Barbados on Saturday.
On an action-packed Saturday of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup, the Kensington Oval stadium in Barbados is playing host to the oldest and most heated rivalry in the sport's history, England and Australia.
While the England versus Australia rivalry is best experienced and enjoyed during the Ashes series, a multi-Test match competition, the white-ball cricket matches between two cricketing powerhouses are just as entertaining. Add to this rivalry the occasion of Cricket World Cup and the action becomes just as intense as a Test match at Lord's with the Ashes urn on the line.
In the history of the ICC T20 World Cup, England and Australia have locked horns thrice, with England enjoying an advantage with two wins and just one loss. One more match, in the 2022 edition of the tournament in Australia, could not happen because of rain. Australia has not prevailed over England in T20 WC since 2007.
England skipper Buttler said during the toss, "We are going to bowl first. A little bit unsure about the weather. Always a pleasure to play a WC game against Australia in Barbados. A couple of areas where we can work on, we have trained and prepared well, excited for the game. We have done well against them in recent games, but past form does not matter. We are unchanged, lots of options in the squad."
Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh said during the toss, "We would have bowled first as well, it is dictated by the conditions and the weather. We have come here to win the tournament and today is a big match. Great feeling (on captaincy), I have a lot of experienced players around who are big match winners. It is going to be a good challenge and we are confident going into the game. One change, Pat Cummins replaces Nathan Ellis."
Australia (Playing XI): David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh(c), Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Matthew Wade(w), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
England (Playing XI): Jos Buttler(w/c), Philip Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood.
