James Faulkner couldn’t care less who Australia face in their World Cup cricket quarter-final.

By conquering Sri Lanka in a critical clash at the SCG last Sunday, the tournament co-hosts all but ensured they will avoid South Africa in the round of eight.

It means the winner of Sunday’s fixture between Ireland and Pakistan is likely to be waiting for Australia in the knockout phase.

“I sort of stay away from it and take each game as it comes,” Faulkner said on Monday, having landed in Hobart for the first of three rest days for the 15-man squad.

“Other players look at that, everyone is different.

“We’ll see how that all plays out.

“We know that once it comes to the finals we’ve got to play our best cricket to get where we want to get in the tournament.”

The SCG victory also effectively removed the prospect of Australia playing a semi-final in Auckland.

“It was a must-win game for us to sit second on the table and have a real crack at this tournament,” Faulkner said.

A clash with lowly Scotland will be Australia’s last chance to draw breath before they travel to Adelaide for the March 20 quarter-final.

Michael Clarke expects his teammates to be ruthless this week, urging them to back up a 64-run win over Sri Lanka with a faultless performance against the winless Scots on Saturday.

“I don’t think much changes in regards to attitude,” Clarke said.

“It’s one of the major positives with this team at the moment. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing against.”

Australia amassed 9-376 against Sri Lanka, but their bowling wasn’t quite as productive.

Tillakaratne Dilshan thumped Mitchell Johnson for six fours in one of his overs, while Xavier Doherty and Shane Watson also copped some treatment.

However, Mitchell Starc continued his excellent form, proving himself one of the best bowlers in the World Cup.

“His death bowling is very good,” Clarke said.

Watson was dropped last Wednesday due to a lack of runs with the bat, only to be recalled by selectors because of his experience with the ball.

The allrounder went for 10.14 runs an over, but batted superbly and claimed the important scalp of captain Angelo Mathews.

Watson’s prompt recall surprised many pundits, but Clarke was keen to steer clear of discussion about selectors or selections.

“I’m not going there. The selectors pick the 11 players and my job is to try and get the best out of the 11,” Clarke said.