There is another double header day of action in the T20 World Cup 2021 tournament on Wednesday and it starts in Dubai where New Zealand will look to strengthen their semi-final claims when they take on Scotland in Super 12 Group 2.
New Zealand know that if they win their last three matches of the Super 12 stage they will be through to the semi-final. Scotland know that they are going to be going home at the end of this phase but will want to take a major scalp with them before they depart.
New Zealand
Such has been the quirky nature of the schedule of this competition, it has been going for almost two weeks and this is just the third time New Zealand have been on show. They opened up with a defeat to Pakistan in an outcome which is looking no worse with every match Babar Azam’s men play, but bounced back to beat India in a clash which looked like a knockout clash in all but name given the way the group looked at the time.
Whether that win kept New Zealand alive or not, the one thing it did do was keep their fortunes in their own hands. They now face the perceived lesser three teams to finish off the group stage and if they win them all they will be in the final four. New Zealand look to be bowling very well. They could just do with tidying their batting up a little but all in all I would imagine they will be content with where they are in the competition and if they improve with each match they will soon become title contenders.
Scotland
I thought at the time that the final for Scotland was their final first round group match with Oman. They were playing what was a knockout game of cricket with not just a passage into the Super 12s on the line but also a straight route to the next T20 World Cup in Australia next year. You could tell from the celebrations at the end of that win how big a victory it was for Scottish cricket and their intensity has dropped since then, understandably so.
They might well feel they have let themselves down in defeats to Namibia and Afghanistan and that is where the disappointment comes but they shouldn’t be too harsh on themselves. They have had the best part of a week to take stock and come back down to earth and build themselves up for three more outings and their intention will be to knock a big team off their perch. If that is to happen they need to improve at the top of their batting order and at the end of their bowling innings.
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Key Men
Daryl Mitchell is becoming an important player for New Zealand. He has previously delivered the goods finishing off an innings and against India he showed that he can do the job at the top of the order too. A big knock from him will have him handily placed ahead of the huge Afghanistan clash.
Michael Leask could be a big player for Scotland here. He has the capability to get the job done with the bat but actually when he has been trusted in good positions with the ball he has bowled well. Scotland will need his full all-round ability here.
Betting
I’m a little surprised that Michael Leask has got a performance line as low as 20.5 for this match. He is a perfectly competent batsmen and while he didn’t start the tournament in great shakes he scored 44 against Namibia last time out and I wouldn’t be surprised if he goes well with the bat in this match too given that he bats for the order and should stay away from the new ball bowlers. I’m not saying the spinners are easy to face but the real danger in this New Zealand outfit is the new ball.
Leask has also taken two wickets in two of his last three matches and if he takes one of them here then we only really need him to get to the crease because he’ll only need one run. I’m pretty certain he’ll get to the crease because it will only take four wickets to get him there and you’ve got to think this New Zealand attack are good for that at the very least. Whether he scores these points with the bat or with the ball or in the field, I think there is a better chance of him reaching 21 than the odds suggest.
Tips
Back M.Leask’s Performance – Over 20.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 2.25 with Bet365
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