The 2006 ICC Champions Trophy may only be a few matches old but already Saturday's encounter between England and world champion Australia in Jaipur looms as one of the most important of the tournament.
Both teams are coming off defeats in their first matches - England was dismissed for just 125 to lose to India by four wickets, while Australia suffered a late collapse in the face of some fine bowling from Jerome Taylor to go down to the West Indies.
Another loss here for either side would almost certainly spell the end of their Champions Trophy campaigns.
For the pre-tournament favourite Australia, a defeat would more than likely mean another doomed finish at the only major cricket tournament this country is yet to win.
Not only would it put a dent in its 2007 World Cup aspirations but, more importantly, it could give England a psychological edge heading into the Ashes series in Australia next month.
The Aussies can still sneak through to the semi-finals with only one win from their three pool matches but only if other results fall their way and they of course defeat the host nation India the following Sunday.
Saturday's clash will be the first time that the teams have met since last year's Ashes series.
And Australian skipper Ricky Ponting - who has been in his own batting slump with just 103 runs at an average of 14.7 from his past seven one-day internationals - is desperate for a win against the Old Enemy, particularly with India to come after that.
The Australians are likely to go into the game with an unchanged line-up looking to inflict another loss on the eighth-ranked England team, which had been beaten in 14 of its past 20 matches before the Champions Trophy.
"I think you've got to look at every game in this series as a knockout game anyway," Ponting said after the loss to the West Indies on Wednesday. "As we found out in the last couple of Champions Trophies, one little slip up and you're gone."
Newly-promoted opener Shane Watson is expected to retain his place at the top of the order despite his three-ball duck against the West Indies, while veteran paceman Glenn McGrath should be better for the run against the side from the Caribbean.
England on the other hand will be simply looking for a win, with its injury-plagued side - missing the likes of Michael Vaughan, Marcus Trescothick and paceman Simon Jones - in search of some much-needed confidence.
Fireworks are expected on and off the pitch, with the game being played on the same day as India celebrates Deepavali, the festival of lights.
Deepavali, the country's biggest Hindu festival, is kicked off with fireworks that begin at dusk and continue for hours, leaving a haze of smoke and heavily polluted air.
While firecrackers are banned from the Sawai Man Singh stadium, the venue is likely to be surrounded by a thick pall of smoke for much of the contest, much like India's clash with England earlier in the tournament.
