World Cup 2019: 5 classic encounters to look out for

#4 New Zealand vs Australia (June 29)

The players of these 2 sides share a good friendship both on and off the field.

The Black Caps and the Aussies met at the 2015 World Cup Final, the tournament where they were the co-hosts and in the end, Australia triumphed to leave the Kiwis devastated once more. Despite the absence of an impending rivalry between the sides, the teams always played their best cricket against each other and every fixture has guaranteed a brilliant cricket match filled with twists and turns.

However, Australia have a huge 90-39 advantage over New Zealand in 129 completed ODIs while having a 3-7 advantage over them in World Cup games.

Despite the history leaning towards Australia, it is expected to have no bearing over this match. Both the sides are well-balanced sides with a strong contention of making it to the playoffs hence an exciting clash on 29th June is a certainty.

Key players for New Zealand: Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, and Trent Boult

Key players for Australia: David Warner, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Starc.

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#3 India vs Australia (June 9)

Aaron Finch and Virat Kohli

India vs Australia, a fixture which means so much to all the fans of both these sides without really having a lot of history behind their rivalry. They fight their hearts out on the field but share a good camaraderie off of it. They are two of the strongest sides in the tournament and the 2 points up for grabs are very crucial in determining the final standings of the points table.

The Australians lead 77-49 in the head-to-head record between these sides in the 126 completed ODIs while having an 8-3 advantage over them in World Cups, the last of those wins coming in the World Cup 2015 semi-finals.

Come June 9th, these 2 sides will square off at the Oval, London and renew another chapter in their fascinating cricketing rivalry.

Key players for Australia: David Warner, Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis and Adam Zampa.

Key Players for India: Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, and Jasprit Bumrah.