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Tasmania vs South Australia: One-Day Cricket Cup live scores, blog

13th October, 2015
Start time: 10am
TV: GEM
George Bailey will lead the Tigers out today (AFP PHOTO/PUNIT PARANJPE)
Roar Guru
13th October, 2015
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Tasmania and South Australia will both be looking to bolster their ambitions of a finish in the top three and a subsequent spot in the elimination final on Wednesday morning when the two sites meet at Blacktown International Sportspark.

Join The Roar for live scores and commentary from 9.45am (AEDT).

South Australia’s dramatic last-ball win over Queensland was not just significant in the sense it meant they gave themselves hope of a spot in the elimination final, but also as it means they have already register more wins than they did in either of the past two competitions.

When the other states were given the advantage of having their Test players return, with South Australia’s squad remaining unaltered, it seemed possible that they were set for yet another disappointing season. Yet they now find themselves with wins registered against the tournament two previous winners the sides prospects are looking good.

Part of South Australia’s rejuvenation has been down to the fact that they have depth in their squad, they aren’t too reliant on any one player. Yet even with that being the case when someone scores a double-century on the opening day they are bound to catch attention.

As mesmerising as Head’s 202 was, he has underwhelmed in his two innings since with scores of 0 and 12, though at the same time his captaincy has been credible for someone so inexperienced.

This is important to his states chances as his counterpart George Bailey certainly doesn’t lack experience. In the modern game selectors err to the side of conservatism when selecting a team’s captain, so it speaks volumes of how Bailey’s leadership skills are perceived that he was named captain of the Australian Twenty20 team on his debut.

While that debut must have been a remarable occasion for Bailey, his side’s loss to the Cricket Australia XI, who were decimated in their previous two games, must rank at the other end of the spectrum.

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Bailey of course also offers a mixture of skill and resilience with the bat, the latter of which has proved a necessary quality for batsmen at Blacktown this season. The ground has been an oddity in the sense that it has favoured the bowlers above the batsmen with any score of over 200 proving competitive.

With every side winning doing it so far, both Bailey and Head will be looking to bat first on Wednesday. They will also be looking to utilise their spin options well as the lack of pace in the pitch has certainly aided the slower bowlers.

Xaveir Doherty is Tasmania’s primary spin option and has thus far had a solid tournament with his economy never getting far from the four an over mark. If he is on form he may well be able to tie down an end and build pressure.

South Australia’s main spin option is legspinner Adam Zampa, who in many ways is the polar opposite of Doherty. Zampa has constantly looked to attack the batsmen, even on the tiny North Sydney Oval ground, and while his figures may not reflect it, he has looked very dangerous this season. With the protection of the bigger ground he too could be key for South Australia.

A close game is certainly a likelihood as the two sides seemed evenly matched, but on form South Australia probably have the edge on Tasmania and can consider themselves narrow favourites for that reason.

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