Ireland play a lone international against Australia before the Aussies kick into a T20 and then ODI series against the Old Enemy. Join us for live scores of the cricket from 7:45pm AEST tonight.
It’s the first match of Australia’s post-Michael Clarke era. Ireland are the opponent. Australia will be hungry for revenge after a decidedly poor Ashes series, salvaged somewhat by victory in the last Test at The Oval.
But there’s no doubt the Aussies will be smarting. Steve Smith is the man charged with recovering from what was Australia’s equivalent of England’s 5-0 drubbing a couple of summers ago.
The one day team has largely the same bones as the one that dominated the Cricket World Cup earlier this year.
Shane Watson and Mitchell Marsh will pair up in the all-rounder spots, while Glenn Maxwell comes in to lend his irresistible stylings to the team.
The new faces are Matthew Wade and Joe Burns, that latter of which will make his debut for Australia in the coloured clothing in this match.
He is slated to open the batting alongside David Warner, with Aaron Finch not in the side. There’s no Brad Haddin for Australia, with Wade taking the gloves.
They will come up against an Ireland team who have surprised a few sides in the past. They possess plenty of betting swagger, though not the technique and discipline in the bowling.
It will likely be treated as a bit of a warm-up by the Aussies, several of whom haven’t stretched their legs in anger since the World Cup.
Mitchell Starc leads an inexperienced but exciting bowling lineup for the Aussies, containing Pat Cummins and Nathan Coulter-Nile.
That trio, along with Maxwell, Watson and Marsh, should be enough to jag wickets against this Ireland side, but if they’re put under any pressure then things could move very fast with the likes of O’Brien and Porterfield at the crease.
It should be a good hitout, and an enjoyable game to watch. Follow here for all the live scores, and feel free to have your say in the comments section below.
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.
The mammoth rise of Jake Fraser-McGurk - his enormous potential and the destructive shot-making that he possesses makes him a very tempting option.
Marcus Stoinis produced his first IPL century and it was a beauty. He went 6, 4, 4, 4 to finish off the Lucknow Super…
Xavier Bartlett has been permission to extend his cricketing education with a spell of T20s in England, playing in the Blast competition for Kent…
Three-Test spinner Matthew Kuhnemann has signed with Tasmania in a bid for red-ball game time ahead of Australia's tour of Sri Lanka next summer.…
Last week, you read about the Matt XI, a compilation of the best cricketers ever to represent the name Matt. And to be fair,…
The Aussie needed every centimetre of his height and reach to reel that one in!
