As much as 8 teams have announced their squads for the world cup and among those only Pakistan and England have stressed on the word “Preliminary” which tells us that they are more likely to change their squad before the world cup since they have a One day series between them before the mega event.
Australia
The Australians have called their batting stalwarts Smith and Warner who were serving their ban due to ball tampering. They had to make a tough decision in by leaving out Handscomb who was terrific with the bat in middle overs against India and Pakistan. By dropping Handscomb, the selectors have ensured that they do not have a professional back up wicket keeper to Carey which might bite them at the world cup if Carey sustains an injury as its a long tournament.
15 member Squad
- Aaron Finch(captain)
- David Warner
- Steve Smith
- Usman Khawaja
- Shaun Marsh
- Glenn Maxwell
- Marcus Stoinis
- Alex Carey(wk)
- Adam Zampa
- Nathan Lyon
- Mitchell Starc
- Pat Cummins
- Jhye Richardson
- Nathan Coulter-Nile
- Jason Behrendorff
The squad consists of as much as 5 fast bowlers and they have followed the same pattern as that of 2015 world cup squad. They have well-rounded side stacked with back up opener and middle order batsmen and they also have back up for Starc in the form of Behrendorff.
My probable playing XI
- Aaron Finch
- David Warner
- Usman Khawaja
- Steve Smith
- Glenn Maxwell
- Marcus Stoinis
- Alex Carey(wk)
- Pat Cummins
- Mitchell Starc
- Jhye Richardson
- Adam Zampa
The above playing XI has as much as 6 potential bowling options and they have players who can anchor the innings with the bat and some explosive hitters in the middle with the likes of Stoinis and Maxwell and solid openers as well. This Australian squad is well equipped to retain their trophy.
Sri Lanka
The selectors have made some hard decisions in picking their squad of 15. They have left out some of their batting mainstays like Chandimal , Dickwella, and Tharanga and their trusted spinner Akila Dhananjaya. They have made surprise decision by handing over the captaincy to Karunaratne who last played a one day 2 years ago.
15 member squad
- Dimuth KArunaratne(captain)
- Lahiru Thirimanne
- Kusal Mendis
- Kusal Perera
- Angelo Mathews
- Dhananjaya de Silva
- Thisara Perera
- Jeffrey Vandersay
- Suranga Lakmal
- Isuru Udana
- Lasith Malinga
- Jeevan Mendis
- Nuwan Pradeep
- Milinda Siriwardana
- Avishka Fernando
The above squad has a blend of youth and experience. They have chosen their squad based on the current form of the players and not gone by reputation.
My probable playing XI
- Dimuth Karunaratne
- Avishka Fernando
- Kusal Mendis
- Kusal Perera
- Angelo Mathews
- Dhananjaya de Silva
- Thisara Perera
- Isuru Udana
- Jeffrey Vandersay
- Suranga Lakmal
- Lasith Malinga
Though on paper this side looks pretty weak and not well suited for this big stage, they have been consistent in ICC events and they can play some ruthless cricket this time around and surprise anyone on their day as they have nothing to lose.
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