England and Australia meet at Lord’s in a match which will see the touch paper lit on one of cricket’s most historic rivalries in the group stage of the Cricket World Cup 2019.
England, who suffered a shock 20-run defeat to an impressive Sri Lanka last week, will be looking to display the same standard of breath-taking batting that was on show last summer in the 5-0 whitewash of Australia.
The defeat to Sri Lanka has opened up the group stage once again, with the mid-table showing that the final four are not untouchables. England struggled on a difficult pitch and find themselves just two points ahead of Sri Lanka, who kept their slim hopes of a semi-final berth alive.
Meanwhile, Australia have taken the competition in their stride, with a loss to India their only blip so far. The returns of Steve Smith and David Warner following last year’s ball-tampering scandal has breathed new life into what was a stagnant Australian camp. Warner has scored a tournament-high 447 runs thus far whilst Smith has racked up an impressive 244 himself.
England will face Australia without opener Jason Roy after he failed to recover from his torn hamstring, which has kept him out of the last two games. England captain Eoin Morgan has claimed that his side will play “aggressive, smart cricket” and will be hoping rising star Jofra Archer can deal with the rampant Warner and the rest of the Australian batting line-up.
What time does it start?
England vs Australia starts at 10.30 am BST at Lord’s, London
Where can I watch it?
The match will be shown live on Sky Sports Main Event from 9.30 am and highlights will be shown at 11.00 pm on Channel 4.
It’s a big game for
Jofra Archer has been in sensational form during the tournament, vindicating the ECB’s concerted efforts to bring him into the fold. After taking another three wickets in the shock defeat to Sri Lanka, Archer finds himself joint with Pakistan’s Mohammad Amir and Australian Mitchell Starc on 15 wickets at the top of the bowling charts. The 24-year-old will be looking to cement his place both on the world stage, and atop the bowling standings.
Remember when?
England smashed Australia and the world record with a 481-6 run total last June, beating their own record of 409 against New Zealand in 2015.
Best stat
Australia stopped a run of six consecutive ODI defeats to England in May with a 12-run victory in a World Cup warm-up fixture in Southampton.
Last time out
England secured their first-ever 5-0 white-wash victory over Australia last June, when a much-depleted Australian team was torn apart by a rampant home side.
Form guide
England: WLWWWL
Australia: WWLWWW
Odds
England to win: 7/10
Australia to win: 23/20
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