T20 World Cup, 2nd semi-final: Finch elects to field first
Pakistan and Australia will square off in the second semi-final of 2021 T20 World Cup on Thursday. The Dubai Stadium will host the high-octane clash. Pakistan won all their matches in the Super 12 stage as Australia won four and lost one. The news from the center is that Australian skipper Aaron Finch has won the toss and will field first.
Why does it matter?
In the ongoing tournament, teams batting second have gone on to win 10 matches. One one match has been won by a team batting first. Therefore, Australia have done the right thing by winning the toss and will back themselves with the dew factor coming in. Pakistan need to bat well and put up a good score. The powerplay overs will be crucial.
Here is the head-to-head record
The two sides have met 23 times in T20I cricket, with Pakistan leading the head-to-head series 13-9 (1 NR). Pakistan and Australia last faced each other in T20Is in November 2019. Australia won the three-match series 2-0. As far as the T20 World Cup is concerned, both sides have won three matches each. Australia won in the 2016 edition by 21 runs.
Key details about the match
The match will be held at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. It will begin at 7:30 PM IST. Both Australia and Pakistan won their last games on this venue. The batters are able to play on the up here. Meanwhile, the spinners are always in action. One can watch the match live on the Star Sports Network and stream the same on Disney+ Hotstar.
Fifth T20 WC semis for Pakistan
This will be Pakistan's fifth appearance in the T20 WC semi-finals. They reached this stage in the first four editions (2007, 2009, 2010, and 2012). Pakistan were crowned champions of the 2009 edition. On the other hand, Australia will be playing their fourth semi-final of the T20 WC (2007, 2010, and 2012). The Aussies are yet to win the tournament.
A look at the two teams
Pakistan playing XI: Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Babar Azam (c), Fakhar Zaman, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Asif Ali, Shadab Khan, Imad Wasim, Hasan Ali, Haris Rauf, Shaheen Afridi Australia playing XI: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
