Resurgent Australia face tenacious Netherlands in World Cup

Bolstered by the revival of their batting firepower a rejuvenated Australia will look for another dominating show but need to be cautious when they face the tenacious Netherlands in their next World Cup match here on WednesdayAlso Read ICC World Cup 2023 SA vs BAN Bangladesh bowlers take two wickets in first powerplayAfter a disappointing start to their campaign the fivetime champions turned it around with two solid performances against Sri Lanka and Pakistan but they know very well that they can illafford to take the Dutch lightly in what is turning out to be a World Cup of upsetsThe Netherlands have been one of the success stories of this showpiece event as they stunned an inform South Africa at Dharamsala after returning to the World Cup following a 12year hiatus They will look to take a cue from Afghanistans win over Pakistan to keep their story aliveHowever it will be easier said than done especially after the marauding show of the Aussies against PakistanThe reasons behind the turnaround include their toporder batting might the return to form of spinner Adam Zampa and the consistent performances of pacers Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell StarcThe return to form of David Warner and Mitchell Marsh is good news for Australia as they can blow away any opponent with their sheer ruthless batting A case in point is the 259run opening partnership that the two shared against PakistanMarsh has scored 351 runs at a strike rate of 1083 in seven innings as an opener grabbing the opportunity with both hands in place of an injured Travis Head while the everdependable Warner has looked in ominous touchBut Australia will need to add firepower in their middle order especially with Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne struggling at the momentWhile Smith has crossed the 30mark only once in his last four innings Labuschagne has fared slightly better though he is yet to score a halfcentury in the tournament and has a low strike rate of 6470With Head nearing his full fitness the Delhi game could be a final test for Smith and Labuschagne to prove themselves as another failure might see one of them lose their place to the returning Head who also provides the team with a handy offspin optionGlenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoins havent exactly set things on fire with the bat but wicketkeeper batter Josh Inglis has been among the runs scoring a crucial fifty against Sri LankaIn bowling Hazlewood has been successful in keeping things tight Zampa strangled the middle order and returned with two fourwicket hauls in the last two matches which went a long way in getting the team back to winning waysStarc though continued his dream run of taking wickets in all World Cup matches and would fancy his chances after taking a hattrick in their rainhit abandoned warmup game against the Dutch But skipper Pat Cummins need to do more to lead from the front and produce those breakthroughsSpin will come into play at the Feroz Shah Kotla track where Afghanistan tweakers dismantled England the other day and Australia will hope Maxwell provides Zampa with the support at the other endThe Dutch on the other hand have never beaten Australia in ODIs They lost the two times they met way back in 2003 and 2007But the Orange Brigade as shown what they are capable of in the runup to the World Cup and also during their sensational win over South Africa and a narrow loss to Sri Lanka in the last matchArmed with a gang of steady allrounders the Netherlands have shown they are capable of winning but to have a consistent run they will need better execution especially from the toporder and the bowling departmentWhile the likes of opener Max ODowd and Vikramjit Singh havent been able to give them a good start the Netherlands have found someone or the other to take them to 200plus scores in the tournamentBut they have bowled too many boundary balls and also floundered in the fielding department to undo their good workBas de Leede Aryan Dutt and PA van Meekeren have done most damage with the ball but will need support from others and better execution to tame their oppositionAll eyes will also be on the deteriorating air quality of the national capital which has been a concern during an international fixture in the pastTeams Australia Pat Cummins c Steve Smith Alex Carey Josh Inglis Sean Abbott Ashton Agar Cameron Green Josh Hazlewood Travis Head Mitch Marsh Glenn Maxwell Marcus Stoinis David Warner Adam Zampa Mitchell StarcNetherlands Scott Edwards c amp wk Colin Ackermann Wesley Barresi wk Bas de Leede Aryan Dutt Sybrand Engelbrecht Ryan Klein Teja Nidamanuru Max ODowd Saqib Zulfiqar Shariz Ahmad Logan van Beek Roelof van der Merwe Paul van Meekeren and Vikramjit SinghThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute 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