Dubai, Nov 13 (UNI) There has not been any media glimmer on Aaron Finch and Kane Williamson in the T20 World Cup thus far due to their poor batting display, but they will be the cynosure of the fans when they walk into the middle for the toss here tomorrow.
Their supporters will expect them to win the toss, for it has been a win-win situation for sides chasing the target due to the dew factor, which some players including Virat Kohli, spoke about aloud.
Australia have won five matches chasing targets and lost the lone match when they batted first against England in the league stage. New Zealand, on the other hand, lost their only match when they set a target.
Winning the summit clash, will fetch either of the teams to lift the T20 WC trophy for the first time. Both sides have not won the title before. For Australia, right-arm leg-spinner Adam Zampa and David Warner are the players to watch out for as Finch would want them to deliver the goods one last time in the tournament.
Zampa has been the strike bowler for Finch throughout the tournament, who was the highest wicket-taker in Super 12s. He trails only Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga 16 for most at the tournament. The Aussie record for most wickets at a T20 World Cup was the 14 Dirk Nannes took in the Caribbean in 2010.
Warner had a terrible lead-up to the tournament as he was dropped from his IPL franchise and scored 0 and 1 in the World Cup warmups, but he rode back to form with 89 not out against West Indies in Australia’s final group match.
Even more satisfying was his 49 off 30 that pulled Australia out of the woods caused by Shaheen Shah Afridi early on in the semifinal match against Pakistan.
Warner is 29 runs away from racing past Matthew Hayden's record for the most runs scored at a single T20 World Cup by an Australian. Haydos hit 265 in 2007, and Shane Watson had 249 in 2012. The dashing opener has 236 and his 35 boundaries (28 fours, 7 sixes) are the joint-most by any player in the tournament, equaling Mohammad Rizwan and Jos Buttler.
Finch is expected to go into the field with an unchanged side and persist with a pace-heavy approach and may shuffle Glenn Maxwell depending on how the Aussies start.
For New Zealand, Williamson would expect Martin Guptill and Trent Bout to deliver the goods. Guptill has the potential to hurt Australia early. He has 218 runs in his kitty against Australia. The Kiwis would be expecting him to repeat Brendon McCullum's feat in the 2015 ODI World Cup against the Aussies.
Boult is just behind Zampa with 11 wickets in the Super 12s, at an impressive economy rate of 6.54, but this feat has gone unmentioned in the media. For sure, he has been the most dangerous bowler in Power Plays and at the back-ends against Australia.
Tim Southee also has contributed in his own way. He has caused batters more problems for inducing them for false shots with figures of 44 percent.
Unlike the Aussies, New Zealand will go into the match without the services of Devon Conway, who broke his finger bone after he punched his bat out of frustration for getting out in the semifinal against England. The left-hander was stumped for 46 off 38 balls at a crucial juncture during New Zealand's run-chase.
Tim Seifert is likely to replace Conway. The second keeper has played just one game against Pakistan in the tournament and scored eight off as many balls.
Teams
Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (c), Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade (wk), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.
New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Daryl Mitchell, Kane Williamson (c), Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Tim Seifert (wk), Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Trent Boult.
UNI BDN RJ