Australia Women vs Bangladesh Women, ICCW T20 WC 2023, Today Match Prediction 14 February 2023

ausw vs banw Match Prediction & Analysis

The defending champions Australia will meet Bangladesh in the 8th match of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2023. The two teams from Group A will lock horns at St. George’s Park in Gqberha.

The 5-time champions have kicked off their campaign on a winning note defeating New Zealand in their opening match. There wasn’t anything unexpected about the Bangladesh Women as they lost by 7 wickets against Sri Lanka in their first game. 

The batting struggles have been there for quite some time now. However, they have done relatively better against the Asian teams and the loss against Sri Lanka must have hurt their confidence.

Australia Women’s squad is full of match-winning players in every department. From Shutt and Perry in the bowling attack to Healy and Lanning in the top order, there are many impact players in this side.

TEAMS PREVIEW

Australia Women Preview

Australia will be happy to have bounced back quickly from their loss to Ireland in their last warm-up match. Skipper Lanning will be hoping for a smooth journey ahead without any upsets.

Bangladesh Women are not a strong side compared to the Aussies. And Lanning will be looking to make the most of this encounter by securing a big enough win that also helps with the Net Run Rate.

Ashleigh Gardner will be the key player in the side as Australia looks to continue their dominance on the world stage. The batting all-rounder has been a crucial part of the Australian middle order. 

And in the recent match against New Zealand, she also showed just how good she can be with the ball. The batting lineup is quite deep and the top order features some of the most consistent batters in this squad. Beth Mooney and Alyssa Healey will be eager to find their form after recent failures to put a decent opening stand.

Given the opener’s lack of consistency at the top, the middle order will have a major role to play in setting a good target. The star player Elysse Perry is a match-finisher at number 5 who can score quick runs at the death.

The variety in the bowling attack will always be Australia’s biggest strength. There are many impact bowlers like Megan Schutt and Darcy Brown who can shift the scales in Australia’s favour at any point in the game.

Australia Women Predicted Playing XI:

Alyssa Healy (wk), Beth Mooney, Meg Lanning (c), Ashleigh Gardner, Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Grace Harris, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Megan Schutt, Darcie Brown

Australia Women Actual Playing XI:

Meg Lanning, Grace Harris, Beth Mooney, Megan Schutt, Darcie Brown, Alana King, Ellyse Perry, Tahlia McGrath, Ashleigh Gardner, Alyssa Healy, Georgia Wareham

Bangladesh Women Preview

Bangladesh Women have a big challenge on their hands. It is the mighty Aussies they are facing away from home in the challenging conditions of South African pitches. 

Bangladesh have already lost a match so far in addition to both of their warm-up games. After opting to bat first against Sri Lanka in their last match, all they could manage was a 126-run total in Cape Town. 

The opposition chased it down with ease beating Bangladesh Women by 7 wickets. It seems as if there are only 4-5 batters in this lineup. Shamima Sultana, Murshida Khatun, and skipper Nigar Sultana are all they’ve got in the batting department.

It is always one of these three players who have the highest individual score in the Bangladesh innings. There hasn’t been any other player who’s made a significant contribution to the Bangladesh total. With such a batting lineup where only a few players actually make a difference, the strike rates can’t be any great either. 

If these three aim at scoring quickly and lose their wickets, the others would just collapse and the team ends up with a below-par total. Marufa Akter, Jahanara Alam, and Nahida Akter are the key bowlers who can deliver breakthroughs and keep the team alive in the game.

Bangladesh Women Predicted Playing XI:

Shamima Sultana (wk), Murshida Khatun, Sobhana Mostary, Nigar Sultana (c), Shorna Akter, Ritu Moni, Lata Mondal, Nahida Akter, Marufa Akter, Salma Khatun, Jahanara Alam

Bangladesh Women Actual Playing XI:

Nahida Akter, Sobhana Mostary, Shamima Sultana, Fahima Khatun, Murshida Khatun, Marufa Akter, Shorna Akter, Rumana Ahmed, Ritu Moni, Nigar Sultana, Salma Khatun

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

It is a bowling-friendly pitch at St. George’s Park in Gqberha. That’s another reason for skippers to get their bowlers a chance to dominate the opposition by opting to bowl first. That way, they would also get enough time to figure out how the pitch behaves and what the right approach to batting will be. There will be scattered thunderstorms on the match day with a high of 27 degrees Celsius.

Venue Details

St. George’s Park in Gqberha will be the venue for this match. The average 1st innings score in men’s T20Is at this venue is 132 runs and 154 runs in the domestic T20s. A 160+ score should be a match-winning total in this game.

Toss: To Bowl

There haven’t been many international matches at this venue. This will be the first women’s T20I on this ground. In the domestic T20s, teams batting second have won 21 of the 40 matches. That’s just a slight edge in favour of the team batting second based on stats. But since both teams have a good bowling attack with reliable players, bowling first is the better option.