Australia will take on Sri Lanka in the final Group B game of the Champions Trophy at Cardiff, with both teams having a viable chance of qualifying for the semi-finals. England are the only team to have qualified from Group B while last match's losers New Zealand also have a chance to make it to the knockouts.

The men in yellow need to win big against Sri Lanka if they have to qualify to the next round on run-rate while a win for Sri Lanka will take them level on points with England but are unlikely to usurp the host nation from the top spot owing to their superior run rate. On the other hand, a scrappy win for Australia will propel New Zealand into the next round who will be closely following the game.

Should England top the group, they will play Group A runners up South Africa, while the other team to qualify from Group B will take on Group A winners and presiding World Champions India.

Dilshan celebrates a wicket for Sri Lanka. [Reuters]
Reuters

Where to Watch Live

Play starts at 1pm BST. Live coverage is on Sky Sports 1 and Sky Sports 1 HD. Follow the match live, via text updates, on ESPN Cricinfo.

Overview

Australia have been in dire straits this tournament, with their only point coming in their match against New Zealand which was called off due to rain. Their game against hosts England ended in a 48 run loss in Birmingham with the Aussie failing to chase down a target of 269 in the allotted 50 overs. Clint McKay and James Faulkner were the only bowlers to have any impact on the game while their batsmen failed to deliver yet again.

Captain Goerge Bailey(54) and James Faulkner(55) put in a fight but wickets falling around them made the job that much more harder, with their innings culminating to a score of 221 runs. Australia have the worst net run rate in the group and need to win the game by a big margin to guarantee a place for themselves in the knockouts.

Sri Lanka shall come into this game knowing that a win here will see them into the semi-finals. Their only win in the tournament came against host nations England where the Lankans chased down a steep target of 293 runs and won the game with seven wickets to spare. A brilliant hundred from Kumar Sangakkara(134*) led the way while knocks from Mahela Jayawarden(42) and Numan Kulasekara(58*) sealed the game for the South Asian side.

Their only other game in the tournament was against New Zealand where they lost by one wicket, having put up a meagre score of only 138 runs on the board and was chased down convincingly by the Kiwis with more than 13 overs to spare.

Form Guide

Australia

    • Last Five(most recent first): L W W W W
    • Last Result: England defeated Australia by 48 runs.

Sri Lanka

    • Last Five (most recent first): W L L W L
    • Last Result: Sri Lanka defeated England by seven wickets

Team News

Michael Clarke is a doubt for the game in spite of training with the first tram leading up to the game. Australia have no other injury worries and are likely to field an unchanged said that started against New Zealand.

Probable Line-Up: Shane Watson, Matthew Wade (wk), Phillip Hughes, George Bailey (capt), Adam Voges, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, James Faulkner, Mitchell Johnson, Clint McKay, Xavier Doherty.

Sri Lanka are likely to go in with an unchanged side that defeated England in comprehensive fashion barring any last minute pull-outs. Thisara Perera may make his way into the side replacing Shaminda Eranga.

Probable Line-Up: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kusal Perera, Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews (capt), Lahiru Thirimanne, Nuwan Kulasekara, Thisara Perera , Rangana Herath, Lasith Malinga.

Australia India South Africa