The 2023 ICC Men’s World Cup semi-finals are here, with Australia taking on South Africa for a spot in the Final!
Both teams have thrived with the bat throughout the tournament, so expect Thursday’s encounter at Eden Gardens to be a shootout of the highest order.
Draftstars has put up $10,000 for the main contest, so check out our full preview with fantasy tips below.
2023 ICC Men’s ODI World Cup Fantasy Tips
Australia vs South Africa
Australia Predicted XI: David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
South Africa Predicted XI: Quinton De Kock, Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Gerald Coetzee, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi
Australia are on course for another World Cup title after successfully navigating the group stage with a 7-2 record. Despite losing their opening two matches, the Aussies quickly found their groove, going undefeated from that point onwards. From an individual standpoint, plenty of players are in form – David Warner (499 runs) and Mitch Marsh (426 runs) are both in the top 10 run scorers, while Adam Zampa tops the wicket taker charts with 22. Furthermore, Glenn Maxwell is fresh off a historic double ton against Afghanistan, and well rested after missing the final group game. The only question mark over Australia is their ability to take early wickets and restrict teams with the ball – pace trio Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood have all underperformed, leaving Zampa and Maxwell to recover the bowling innings on too many occasions. Nevertheless, Australia will be confident that they can take down South Africa, who are notorious for capitulating on the big stage.
South Africa will also fancy their chances, after displaying enviable batting prowess on their way to a second-place group stage finish. The Proteas topped 380 runs on three occasions, blowing sides away with power hitting, especially when setting a total. Quinton De Kock has been at the forefront of South Africa’s excellence with 591 runs at the top of the order, while Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller have all planted their foot on the accelerator pedal at various times throughout the tournament. The bowlers have also brought their ‘A game’ – Gerald Coetzee and Marco Jansen have taken 35 wickets between them, and Keshav Maharaj has thrived with 14 of his own. There is some doubt over how the Proteas perform when forced to chase runs, so it will be interesting to see what tactics are employed at the toss on Thursday with the possibility of some rain interrupting this fixture.
Draftstars Tips
Love It – Glenn Maxwell $18,800
‘The Big Show’ has lived up to his nickname this tournament, producing some history making performances that have propelled Australia towards a semi-final berth. With an average of 144 DFS points, Maxwell is the top ranked player on this slate, and he has the desirable ability to impact matches in all facets of the game – batting, bowling and fielding. I particularly like Maxwell in this matchup as he plays spin bowling well, and should be able to generate some turn on his own at Eden Gardens.
Love It- Keshav Maharaj $15,300
Maharaj has been one of the best performing spinners of the 2023 World Cup, taking 14 wickets to average 74 DFS points. The left-arm tweaker will relish playing on a slow turner at Kolkata, especially given Australia’s recent struggles against quality spin bowling. As such, for just over $15k, Maharaj is arguably the pick of the bowlers on this slate.
Don’t Love It- Travis Head $16,500
Head has scored just 21 runs in three innings since his ton on return against New Zealand, leaving his form in question heading into this semi-final. It’s understandable that the opener is still finding his feet after an extended period on the sidelines, but we are looking for dependable fantasy assets here and Head doesn’t provide that.
Don’t Love It- Steven Smith $12,900
Despite being an absolute champion of the game, Smith has failed to make an impact on this tournament, averaging just 39 DFS points. The Aussie batsman’s best performances have come against the lesser nations, so it will be much harder for him to outperform his price tag against South Africa’s quality attack.
Who Knows- Quinton De Kock $19,500
Quinton De Kock has put an exclamation point on his international career in this tournament, accumulating the second most runs during the group stage (591) at an average of over 65. However, the dynamic left-hander has still been prone to failures, dropping under 50 DFS points in three matches. As such, there’s an inherent risk in picking the most expensive player on this slate.
Suggested Draftstars Lineup
