Asalanka was the star for Sri Lanka while Zampa took 5 wickets for the Aussies
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00:00Hello and a very warm welcome to Golf News Straight Back. We've had two games today,
00:14two interesting games today. Australia against Bangladesh and West Indies against Sri Lanka,
00:19which has literally just finished. Joining me to discuss all the action are Mr Cricket,
00:25UAE Anees Sajjan and Golf News expert Shyam. Anees, let's have your opening thoughts on
00:30what you've seen today.
00:32Thank you Imran. Hello Mr Shyam. Yes, the last match between Sri Lanka and West Indies
00:38did get a little close, but West Indies were always chasing the game and with this defeat
00:43they're all out of the tournament. Sri Lanka must be happy that they've got these two points,
00:48this young team. But the first match, which was important for Australia, they won it on
00:53a canter with 13 overs to spare and they've lifted their run rate. So now it's a battle
00:58between two teams, that is South Africa and Australia, when they play the day after tomorrow
01:03against different oppositions.
01:04Okay, let's start with the first game in a bit more detail. Australia, who were thumped
01:11by Milo in their last game, but they've got their tournament back on track with a huge
01:15win today. It was an absolute mauling, let's be honest, it was a really one-sided game.
01:21The Australians completed their run chase in just over six overs and by doing so they've
01:27boosted their net run rate too. It was a real statement and a perfect day for them, wasn't
01:32it Shyam?
01:33Yeah, I mean pretty much everything went for them. In fact, all their bowlers were among
01:36the wickets and especially Adam Sampa who came away with a five wicket haul. So, actually
01:42Bangladesh couldn't do a thing right, either with the ball or the bat. And when Bangladesh
01:49bowled, I mean, Finns just tore into them and they just stole the victory, actually.
01:57Anish, how come they were so dominant today?
02:01To be very honest, first of all, they won a very important toss and tosses in Dubai has
02:06always helped the team actually putting the opposition in. And secondly, they are a much
02:12more experienced side than Bangladesh and they were playing their full side. Bangladesh
02:16were low on confidence after all the defeats. I don't think they won a single game in this
02:22Super 12, bearing what they won in Oman, the two games to qualify. So, low on confidence,
02:27a team which has a lot of experience, Australia. Third, Sampa coming in to their own, picking
02:34up five wickets. And the right time they got this match where Bangladesh were so low, they
02:40can up their run rate from minus 0.73, they are up to one. So, now Satap Trika has to do all the
02:46catching up in the last game. Anish, the power play, it couldn't have got any better for
02:53Australia and it couldn't have got any worse for Bangladesh. They lost four wickets in those first
02:59six overs. And in fact, Bangladesh have averaged just a little over 14 runs per wicket in the
03:04power play in this World Cup, which is the lowest average for any team in the T20 World Cup.
03:11We know it was always going to be a tough game for them, but losing those four early wickets,
03:16it made the job impossible, really. You're right, Imran. As I said, once the team is
03:22low on confidence and they also knew they're out of the tournament, they do not have
03:26Shakib Ul Hasan. They were just going through the motions of the game. They just had to finish this
03:31game. They finished that game and wanted to take a flight back home early. And they did favours to
03:36Australia, as you said, losing wickets in the power play, four wickets, three wickets.
03:42And any team which has lost two, three wickets in the power play, you've seen their struggle
03:45throughout the tournament. The funny thing about Bangladesh, though, was before the World Cup,
03:50they beat Australia and they beat New Zealand quite convincingly in both of those games. So,
03:56they would have come to the tournament with high hopes of upsetting at least some of the teams,
04:02but that just hasn't happened. Shyam, what's gone wrong with them?
04:06Actually, it's funny that you bring that up because Anis and I were discussing before
04:12we started recording this, because most of these wickets, most of these wins for Bangladesh,
04:17they're on their turning tracks at home. So, I mean, that gives you a false sense of superiority
04:24because on a good wicket, you will get caught out. And this is precisely what's happened to
04:30Bangladesh here. I mean, you can't get the same kind of turn or bounce in here. So,
04:38you are completely caught out and that's precisely what has happened. And not just that,
04:43even the batting has been completely, I mean, what can I say? I mean, it's just been so fragile.
04:51And I think in maybe the first game against Sri Lanka, they've managed a decent start.
04:57170.
04:58Yes. After that, every single game, they have been losing wickets in the power play. Once you land,
05:05like Anis said earlier, if you lose too many wickets in the power play, it's going to be
05:09very, very difficult and you need real quality in the middle order to get back into the game.
05:14And Bangladesh doesn't have that and they have paid the price for that.
05:19I think we were expecting them to upset some of the teams, but I think also a big factor
05:25about them struggling lately was having to do without Shaqib Al Hasan. He's one of their key
05:30players. So that didn't help. But you're right, Shyam, the senior players also in middle order,
05:35nobody managed to get any runs on the board. Anis, but why do you think they've struggled?
05:41I mean, outside of Bangladesh, they've really tended to struggle. Why is that?
05:45Like Shyam mentioned, they keep making those type of wickets which help their style of game.
05:51And when they go abroad, they come across different wickets, even though there were
05:55slow wickets here, but it was not turning as much as it used to turn. Because I remember the matches
05:59and the series they won against New Zealand and Australia, the average batting score was 120.
06:05And when they came here, and especially in Oman, they had a defeat against Scotland.
06:10And then they came back in the two games against Oman and probably Namibia,
06:14if I'm not wrong. I can't remember the third. Ireland, I guess. And when they came here,
06:19as the first game, they did well against Sri Lanka, score 170. But after that,
06:24their batting struggled. Even Shaqib Al Hasan didn't do much with the bat. So the guys like
06:28Mushfiqur Rahman, the Litan Das, even the captain Mohamed Ullah. Disappointment when your top order
06:37doesn't perform. And there's going to be a lot of axing going to happen when they return home,
06:41because I know their precedent, the way he reacts to such defeats. And don't be surprised
06:47if Mohamed Ullah loses his place. And I will be not surprised if I see Tameem Iqbal back into action
06:53as the captain. Interesting. Shyam, Adam Zampa finished with a career best of five for 19.
07:00He's now the leading wicket taker in the Super 12 stage of the World Cup. He's got 10 wickets now.
07:06He's absolutely flying. Now, apart from that dodgy haircut of his,
07:13how impressed have you been with him? He's been good. He's always been a very good
07:18T20 bowler, actually. Not just that, he can be faster through the air. And also,
07:26he can, when the conditions are helpful, he can fly the ball well also. So he's got a nice
07:32action. And he's been very, very good, actually. And I think 10 wickets proves his effectivity.
07:41OK, let's move on to the second match. Current champions West Indies, they needed to win today
07:46to stay in the tournament, well, to make the semifinals. Sri Lanka had already been knocked
07:54out. They'd lost three out of the last four matches, so they were already going home.
07:58The pressure wasn't on them at all anymore. They could play quite freely, and they did.
08:02They made a very bright start when they were put into bat. They scored 189 runs.
08:06And the West Indies needed 34 from the final over, and they could have done with Carlos Braithwaite
08:12again, as you know what he's capable of doing. Unfortunately, he wasn't there this time,
08:17and they failed to chase, and they are out. Shyam, why have they been so disappointing?
08:26Actually, if you look at the West Indies side, most of these guys are in the
08:31twilight of their careers, which means their skills are on the wane, the reflexes are on the
08:35wane, which is what you saw today. See, if you take away Nicholas Puran and Hitmaier, the rest
08:43of them are the oldies. But I would say that it is one of their golden generations. It is
08:48about not taking anything away from them. It is a generation which brought them two World Cups.
08:53So hats off to them and a big salute to them. But the thing is, everything has to come to an end.
08:59It is so disappointing that such a golden generation has to bow out in this manner.
09:04And it is so disheartening to see some people like Kyron Pollard, Chris Cale and Andre Russell
09:14struggling against an attack, which is rather relatively new. And what you should understand
09:20here is Sri Lanka is going through a rebuilding phase, and most of these players are in the ranks
09:25are relatively new. And here they come across as some veterans who's been there and pretty much
09:31been through all kinds of situations. And they are unable to cope with it. These are two teams
09:37on the two ends of the spectrum. And it's so, so bitter. I'm totally disappointed to see the way
09:43the West Indies struggle.
09:44And as Shams mentioned one key player there, Chris Cale, it was another really disappointing
09:49inning from him. Well, just a whole, just a very disappointing tournament for him.
09:53Do you think it's time, like Shams says, it's time for him to call it a day, don't you think?
09:58Oh, yes, he should have called it a day before this tournament, to be very honest. He's been just
10:03there in the team. And as I mentioned about the LA team, just going through the motions,
10:07you see, he can't feel he can't run. You know, every player has a time. And he's had his great
10:12time. That's why he was called the union's boss. So I've always believed players have to bow out
10:17before they were asked to go out. And I'm afraid that he delayed it. And not only him,
10:23if you see even Andre Russell, whom we all say as the great finisher, he looked totally out of
10:29sorts. If I'm not wrong, in this four or five matches, whatever he's played, his highest has
10:34been not even 10. A total maybe he must have scored 20 runs. And Pollard has not done much.
10:40Even Evan Lewis has probably done well in one game. So overall, the batting has struggled.
10:46Pooran Prahod, batting today's game has struggled throughout the tournament. And Hetmaar, all the
10:50big guns have failed to fire. And I'm afraid West Indies look very, very poor. And in fact,
10:57I feel sorry for Sri Lanka. Had they won a couple of close games, they would have been in the knockout.
11:03West Indies clearly got a lot of deadwood there. But on the contrary, Sri Lanka got a very fresh
11:08and young and possibly a dangerous team in the future. A couple of guys to mention there,
11:13Nishanka and Asalanka both got their half centuries today. But in particular, Asalanka
11:18has been, I think, one of the finds of the tournament. He's been really good. I think he's
11:22probably one of the next big things to happen in cricket. He's got all the talent to go all the
11:27way. He's only 24 years old. Nishanka is only 23. So I mean, these young boys, but especially
11:32Asalanka, I mean, he likes to play against fast bowling, which is rare for Bangladesh players.
11:37He was hitting the gaps beautifully today, wasn't he, Shyam?
11:42You're talking about Nishanka or Asalanka?
11:45Well, both, but Asalanka in particular.
11:47Yeah, Asalanka, in fact, I think he's one of the real breakout stars of this tournament.
11:52And you see, he comes in as number three, and which means most of that, if you look at most
11:58of Sri Lanka's matches, they have been losing at least one of the openers in the power play,
12:03which means Asalanka comes into the power play. And what I've seen is the moment Asalanka comes
12:09in, there's a strange calmness to the Sri Lankan innings. He reminds me very much of some older
12:17player called Gurusenge. Asalanka Gurusenge also, he used to bring this kind of calmness. But of
12:24course, Asalanka, he's got far more strokes than Gurusenge. And he's a lot more aggressive than
12:31Gurusenge. But the thing is, that calmness is pretty much the same. So not just that, since
12:36he comes into the power play, he still has power play left. And he's unafraid to lift
12:43over the infield. And he's been getting runs. So in the bargain, the Sri Lankan scoring is picking
12:49up. And also, they are able to put the pressure on the rivals. And Asalanka, to me, is one of
12:54the real finds of this tournament. Yeah, he's been really good. So well,
12:59West Indies defeat means that leaves England, Australia, South Africa fighting to progress
13:05from Group 1. Let's call it a day there, guys. That's all for us for today. There's another
13:09doubleheader tomorrow. A couple of very interesting games in Group 2, as we know. New Zealand are
13:14going to be facing Namibia. And the big one, India against Scotland. We'll be back then to
13:19discuss the action. But in the meantime, do head over to golfnews.com for all the latest news,
13:23reviews, videos, and a lot more. Thanks for your company and goodbye.