World Cup 2023: Decoding Australia and Sri Lanka's struggles
What's the story
Australia and Sri Lanka will meet in Match 14 of the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup.
Lucknow's Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium will host this affair on October 16.
Both sides have made terrible starts to their campaigns, having lost their first two fixtures.
The Aussies are reeling at the bottom of the team standings.
Here we decode their struggles.
Australia
Batters have let Australia down
Australia were folded under 200 in their first two games. The same highlights their batting struggles.
Though the side boasts dashers like Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, and Marcus Stoinis, these names have not been able to apply themselves against spin.
Steve Smith (19 and 46), Marnus Labuschagne (27 and 46), and David Warner (41 and 13) have been guilty of throwing away starts.
Australia
Zampa's poor run has hurt Australia
The lone specialist spinner in the entire Aussie squad, Adam Zampa has been woefully out of touch as he has conceded 123 runs in 18 overs combined in the first two games.
His inability to keep things quite in the middle overs has allowed the opposition batters to cash in.
Though Maxwell has been impressive with his off-spin, Zampa has not supported him well.
Sri Lanka
SL dented with injuries
Sri Lanka headed into the tournament without the services of two of their key bowers, Wanindu Hasaranga and Dushmantha Chameera.
Adding to their woes, skipper Dasun Shanaka has been ruled out now and Kusal Mendis will lead the team in the remainder of the competition.
The unavailability of these stars has left the Lankans reeling. Their youngsters are now required to step up.
Sri Lanka
The poor show from SL bowlers
SL lost their first two games despite scoring over 300.
They conceded a recorded 428/5 against South Africa in their opener, the highest-ever WC total.
The Lankans then failed to defend 344 against Pakistan.
Maheesh Theekshana (5.9) is the only specialist SL bowler with an economy of less than seven at the event.
The team must overcome their woes sooner rather than later.