Australia is set to face Bangladesh in match No. 43 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 on Saturday, November 11. The match will be played at the MCA Stadium in Pune. While the two teams take each other on the playing field, the fantasy cricket managers have a chance to pick their favourite players and form their teams. The performance of the players on the field will translate to points for each fantasy team picked. Bangladesh have struggled to make their presence felt in the tournament. With only two victories in eight matches, they were the first team to be eliminated from the tournament. The ICC Champions Trophy 2025 qualification is on the line for the Tigers, who are currently in the bottom three.
Bangladesh's last match was against Sri Lanka in Delhi. Sri Lanka batted first and scored 279/10 in 49.3 overs, powered by Charith Asalanka's century. Najmul Hossain Shanto (90 off 101 balls) and Shakib Al Hasan (82 off 65 balls) steered Bangladesh to the target in 41.3 overs, registering their second win of the ICC World Cup 2023.
Australia confirmed their berth in the semi-finals after a memorable win against Afghanistan in their last match. This also confirmed a second or third position finish for the team, which means they will take on South Africa in the semi-final.
Chasing 292 to win, Australia were reduced to 91/7, but a Glenn Maxwell show at the Wankhede resulted in a three-wicket win for the Aussies. Maxwell became the first batter to score an ODI double ton while chasing, remaining unbeaten on 201 off 128 balls while also struggling with a severe cramp. He stitched an unbeaten 202-run partnership with Pat Cummins, who scored 12 off 68 balls.
Probable playing XIs
Australia: Travis Head, David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Marnus Labuschagne, Josh Inglis (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
Bangladesh: Litton Das, Tanzid Hasan, Najmul Hossain Shanto, Shakib Al Hasan (c), Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), Mahmudullah, Towhid Hridoy, Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Taskin Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam
Weather conditions and pitch report
The wicket at the MCA Stadium is often very good for batting and we have seen some high scores on this ground. The average score batting first at this venue is 303.
Some rains are forecasted in Pune the days prior to the match, which could have its bearing on the conditions on Saturday. No interruption is expected on match day, with the temperatures ranging from 22 to 33 degrees Celsius.
AUS vs BAN fantasy XI
Wicket-keepers: Litton Das, Mushfiqur Rahim
Batters: Mahmudullah, David Warner, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne
All-rounders: Mehidy Hasan Miraz, Cameron Green
Bowlers: Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Shoriful Islam
Since Australia are the favourites to win this contest, we have gone with six players from their team in the fantasy XI. Mushfiqur Rahim (181 runs) and Liton Das (248 runs) are top choices among keeper-batters.
Mahmadullah has been Bangladesh's best batter of the tournament with 296 runs in seven matches, which includes a century. Among Aussie batters, David Warner is their top run-scorer with 446 runs. Travis Head, who played only three matches, has one century to his credit and Marnus Labuschagne piled up 286 runs in eight matches so far.
Among all-rounders, considering Glenn Maxwell's fitness from the last match, he is likely to be rested for this dead-rubber contest. Cameron Green might be in for this contest and he is a good pick for your fantasy XI. Mehidy Hasan Miraz has been one of the stars of the tournament for the Tigers, scoring 172 runs and picking 10 wickets.
Adam Zampa is one of the tournament's leading wicket-takers and is a definite pick alongside Mitchell Starc (10 wickets) in the bowling attack. Shoriful Islam, with 10 wickets in eight matches, is a good option as well.
Captain: David Warner
With Maxwell likely to be unavailable, David Warner is the numero uno pick for captaincy. The star opener has piled up 446 runs at a strike-rate of 108.25, which includes two centuries and a half-century.
Vice-captain: Adam Zampa
Despite starting the tournament on a poor note, Adam Zampa has grown into one of the best players of the World Cup, registering 20 wickets in eight matches at an incredible average of 19.20. He is one of the best choices for captaincy or vice-captaincy in this fixture.