Australia - Sri Lanka Predictions & Betting tips - ICC Men's Cricket World Cup

Prediction published on 14/10/2023, 14:00  by Devesh Jaganath | Modified on 14/10/2023 at 15:11

Match 13 of 48 in the 2023 Cricket World Cup will see Australia take on Sri Lanka on Monday morning. After their first two matches, both these sides are still winless. Australia are in ninth place in the current standing, while Sri Lanka are in seventh due to a better net run rate. The five-time world champions are in a bad way at the moment. Their CWC campaign began with a six-wicket loss against India. That was followed by a 134-run defeat to South Africa. The major issue for the Aussies at the moment seems to be their batting performances. Over their two games so far, none of their players have been able to score a half-century or better. The Baggy Greens now turn their attention to Sri Lanka, who beat them 3-2 in their most recent ODI series. However, while Australia’s performances have been poor so far, they still possess one of the best teams in world cricket. Therefore, it would come as no surprise if they bounced back with a big performance in this one. The bookmakers have them down as the clear favourites.

Meanwhile, you have to feel for the Sri Lankans. Indeed, they did lose their first two matches, but in both those games, their opponents put on world-record performances. In their first match, South Africa recorded the highest score at a Cricket World Cup of 428/5. While that tally proved too much to chase down, Sri Lanka did score 326. Against Pakistan, the Lions set a score of 344 to chase. Pakistan achieved the total in 48.2 overs, recording the highest successful run chase in World Cup competition. The main aspect Sri Lanka will want to improve will be their bowling, as they have struggled to contain their opponents from scoring freely. Still, they could not have chosen a better time to face the Aussies, who are evidently low on confidence. This is a must-win for both teams.