CHAMPIONSHIP WEEK | MATCH 15 (ECC21.087) AUSTRIA (AUT) v ITALY (ITA) 1500 GMT | 1700 CET | 2030 IST
AUT Group Stage Timeline: W W L W L W W W NR W L (Avg Score For 121, Avg Score Against 111)
AUT Championship Week Timeline: L W W (Avg Score For 139, Avg Score Against 132)
ITA Group Stage Timeline: L L L L W W W W W W L (Avg Score For 112, Avg Score Against 98)
ITA Championship WeekTimeline: L L W (Avg Score For 113, Avg Score Against 115)
AUSTRIA (AUT)
Captain: Razmal Shigiwal
Wicketkeeper: Abrar Bilal
Projected Top Order: Iqbal Hossain, Bilal Zalmai, Razmal Shigiwal, Abrar Bilal, Mirza Ahsan
Projected Opening Bowlers: Aqib Iqbal, Sahel Zadran
Spin Options: Sahel Zadran, Shahil Momin, Iqbal Hossain
Coach: Marcel Biersteker
AUSTRIA Key Players:
Razmal Shigiwal, hard hitting batter, started off Week 2 with a bang plundering 96 runs in just 28 balls including 11 HUGE maximos against Romania. Scored a valiant 78* off 31 vs BEL on Monday. Second highest scorer for Austria mustering 312 runs in 12 innings.
Iqbal Hossain, aggressive opening batter, highest scorer for AUT, hammered 340 runs in 13 innings including a blistering 64* off 29 balls vs HUN. Has bagged three player of the match awards.
Aqib Iqbal, young, energetic fast bowler, capable of swinging the ball in the air and off the deck, second highest wicket taker for AUT picking up 12 wickets with a best return of 3-4.
Shahil Momin, slow left arm orthodox, very talented, has a good cricketing brain and is a decent batsman as well. Bagged back-to-back man of the match awards for his all-round performances scoring a total of 81 runs and picking up three wickets in two games on Tuesday.
Bilal Zalmai, the hard hitting opening batter has been included in the Austria side for the Championship Week to boost the AUT batting. The all-rounder has amassed 618 runs at a SR of 206 and picked up 12 wickets in 22 ECS matches. Scored a crucial 43 off 18 balls vs Spain on Tuesday.
ITALY (ITA)
Captain: Baljit Singh
Wicket Keeper: Nisar Ahmed
Projected Top Order: Nisar Ahmed, Amir Sharif, Baljit Singh, Rajmani Sandhu
Projected Opening Bowlers: Muhammad Imran, Ravi Paul, Amir Sharif
Spin Options: Jorawar Singh
Coach: Kamal Kariyawasama Indipolage
ITALY Key Players:
Baljit Singh, right arm medium pacer with good numbers in international T20. The experienced campaigner can also swing the bat hard. Second highest scorer for ITA racking up 258 runs in 13 innings. Muscled a brilliant match winning 43* off 20 balls vs ENG XI to take his side to a first ECC win. Mustered 62* off 19 in the Group C Final against ENG XI again. Has also picked up 10 wickets.
Amir Sharif, right handed batter and right arm pacer, capable of swinging the ball away from the right hander at pace, third highest wicket taker in the tournament so far scalping 17 wickets including a best return of 4-19 vs GER in the opening game. The all-rounder is also the leading run scorer in the tournament blasting 396 runs in 14 games including 80* off just 26 balls in the Eliminator and 57* off 24 in the second qualifier in week three.
Jaspreet Singh, right arm medium pacer, has been good throughout the tournament picking up 13 wickets in 10 games with a best return of 3-7 sv CZR.
Nisar Ahmed, wicket keeper batter, has plenty of T10 experience playing in the ECS, third highest scorer for ITA racking up 182 runs in 12 games including a match winning 51* off 22 vs CZR in the Eliminator.
Austria and Italy lock horns in the final round robin game of Championship Week. Austria will be eyeing a top three finish while Italy will be keen to finish fourth to give themselves a breather ahead of Super Thursday.
Match Prediction: Austria (AUT) to win a thriller.
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