BY CHETAN NARULA
NEW DELHI (AP) — Australia won the toss and decided to bat first in its Cricket World Cup match against the Netherlands in the Indian capital on Wednesday.
Batsman Travis Head was again missing from Australia’s team. He suffered a fracture on his left hand while touring South Africa last month but re-joined the squad earlier this week.
All-rounder Marcus Stoinis is also sidelined with a calf problem so Cameron Green comes into the side.
Star batsman Steve Smith will be under the spotlight. He has only managed 72 runs in four games in this tournament, with a highest score of 46 against India.
Australia sits in fourth place in the standings with a 2-2 record, including a win last Friday over Pakistan. Australia and Pakistan are level on points but the Australians have a better net run- rate and have played one game fewer.
The Dutch side is 1-3, its only win coming in a huge upset victory over South Africa last week.
It is seventh in the standings, equal on two points with Sri Lanka, defending champion England and Bangladesh but ahead on net run-rate.
The Netherlands is unchanged from its previous game against Sri Lanka, which it lost by five wickets. The pitch at the Arun Jaitley Stadium should again help the batsmen and a high-scoring game could be on the cards. Evening dew may be a factor.
Line-ups:
Australia: David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis, Cameron Green, Pat Cummins (captain), Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood.
The Netherlands: Vikramjit Singh, Max O’Dowd, Colin Ackermann, Bas de Leede, Teja Nidamanuru, Scott Edwards (captain), Sybrand Engelbrecht, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Aryan Dutt, Paul van Meekeren.
AP
