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Sri Lanka vs Australia 2nd ODI: Likely XI for Steven Smith & Co

Australia will be looking to continue their dominance in ODI series and register their second win against Sri Lanka on the tour

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Mitchell Starc reached 100 wickets in ODI and became the fastest bowler to do so © Getty Images
Mitchell Starc reached 100 wickets in ODIs and became the fastest bowler to do so © Getty Images

Australia meet Sri Lanka in the second One-Day International (ODI) of the series at Colombo. The visitors will be high on confidence after getting the better of the hosts in the series opener. After a horrendous Test series, Steven Smith’s team will be looking to take revenge and beat Sri Lanka, and continue their dominance in ODI cricket. In the first match, Australia made a rather comfortable 3-wicket win in the first ODI, chasing down the target with 19 balls to spare. Rangana Herath’s absence was clearly visible in first ODI as the Australian, despite a collapse late into their innings, got over with line with Aaron Finch and Steven Smith scoring half-centuries. Ahead of the second ODI at the P Sara Oval, it is quite expected that Steve Smith will stick to the winning combination. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Sri Lanka vs Australia 2016, 2nd ODI at Colombo

Top Order: David Warner has been far from impressive on the Sri Lankan tour. Warner has struggled to score runs despite being among the most experienced batsmen in the side. After an ordinary display in Test series, Warner could not score in first ODI as he departed for 8 runs. Warner’s form will be a concern but runs can be expected from the Australian vice-captain. Finch joined the side for the ODI series and scored a half-century in the first ODI. He has made an impressive start and Australia will expect Finch to perform in the second ODI as well.Skipper Steven Smith too has been in good form in both Test series and the first ODI. He scored a half-century in the first match. He will be expected to lead the side from the front.

Middle Order: Matthew Wade and George Bailey looked promising in the first ODI despite playing their first match at Sri Lanka in this series. Both of them got off to starts but could not convert those into big scores. They will be expected to deliver in middle order if the top-order stumbles. Moises Henriques has been included in the side in place of Glenn Maxwell. He could not do well with the bat in series opener but did well with the ball picking up a wicket at a good economy rate. On the other hand, Travis Head struggled against spin but should be given another chance as he is new to these conditions and has been in a great form lately.

Lower Order: James Faulkner and Mitchell Starc ensured that Australia reach the target without any late drama. Both of them were impressive with the ball taking 4 and 3 wickets respectively. In the first ODI, Starc  became the fastest bowler to reach 100 ODI wickets and has performed exceptionally well in Test series despite spin-friendly conditions.

Unlike Faulkner and Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Adam Zampa remained wicket-less in the first ODI. Hazlewood is now familiar with the Sri Lankan pitches but proved relatively expensive in first ODI. On the other hand, Zampa had a great Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 season. He will be expected to step up his game as Sri Lankan pitches help spinners.

Australia’s Likely XI:

David Warner, Aaron Finch, Steven Smith (c), Matthew Wade (wk), George Bailey, Moises Henriques, Travis Head, James Faulkner, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa

(Arun Rawal, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a daydreamer, movie buff, and cricket fanatic. He could not play cricket, so did the next best thing, writing for it. He loves to play the flick shot over square leg, and believes Sachin Tendulkar is God. His Twitter handle is @ArunRawal93)

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