With the men’s T20 World Cup nearly upon us, Australia has reason to be concerned heading into the first edition in five years.
Australia will have to defy individual and team form if they are to progress deep into this T20 World Cup, according to cricket legend Mark Waugh.
The tournament, which hasn’t been held since 2016, will get underway on Saturday with the preliminary stages.
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T20 form is definitely an issue for the Australians, who lost series away from home to the West Indies and Bangladesh earlier this year, albeit with a weakened line-up.
Australia’s best possible T20 side has rarely assembled together and a lack of continuity could prove the team’s undoing in the World Cup.
Of the Australians playing in the Indian Premier League, only Glenn Maxwell has performed well with the bat for Royal Challengers Bangalore, while Josh Hazlewood has turned in some respectable efforts with the ball for the Chennai Super Kings.
Captain Aaron Finch is recovering from knee surgery, while David Warner and Steve Smith have both been dropped by their IPL franchises.
Australian cricket great Mark Waugh said it’s “frustrating” Warner and Smith haven’t been given the chance to improve their form in the IPL heading in to the World Cup.
“Both players were dropped by their franchises, which would hurt them,” he told RSN 927 radio.
“They’re both great players and top-class players.
“Steve Smith is the one player I think is best at solving problems.
“He’s a very smart cricketer, he thinks about his game a lot and if he is doing something that’s not quite right he will find an answer. That’s the real strength of his game.”
While Waugh believes T20 is Smith’s weakest format, he thinks the former skipper will need to play a crucial role in the middle order if Australia is any chance of progressing past the group stage.
“I don’t think T20 cricket is his strongest suit,” Waugh said.
“I think it’s his weakest of the three formats.
“Obviously Test cricket and 50 over cricket, they’re his best two formats. He’s probably not the most powerful player. He hits the gaps better than any player in 50 over cricket.
“But he wants to be the best at everything and it’s definitely frustrating that he’s got dropped by the Dehli Capitals and even more so with Warner, who’s got a fantastic record at T20 cricket.
“Those two guys (Smith and Warner) are going to be pretty vital for the World Cup coming up.
“We need them to hit the ground running with the two lead up trial games and then into the tournament.”
There’s plenty to unpack, so here’s everything you need to know about the men’s T20 World Cup.
What is the format of the T20 World Cup?
The World Cup is split into two stages — Round 1 and the Super 12s.
In Round 1, eight nations, who are mostly “minnows” and the lesser-likes of international cricket, will play three matches each, with the top two from each group progressing to the next stage.
The four teams successful in Round 1 will be added to Group 1 and Group 2, with there to be six teams in each Group.
In the Super 12 stage, each country will play every other once. For instance, Australia will play five matches in the Super 12 group stage.
Round 1: Group A
Ireland
Namibia
Netherlands
Sri Lanka
Round 1: Group B
Bangladesh
Oman
Papua New Guinea
Scotland
Super 12: Group 1
Australia
England
South Africa
West Indies
A1
B2
Super 12: Group 2
Afghanistan
India
New Zealand
Pakistan
A2
B1
Where is the tournament being held?
Australia was set to host the T20 World Cup last year but it was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The preliminary stages of the 2021 World Cup will be held in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, with the UAE to host the rest of the tournament.
When does the T20 World Cup start?
The World Cup gets underway on Sunday October 17 with a Round 1 match between Oman and Papua Guinea and will conclude with the final to be held on November 14 in Dubai.
In total, 45 matches will be played across the entire tournament.
Australia will take on New Zealand (October 18) and India (October 20) in its two warm up games, before playing South Africa in its first proper game of the World Cup on Saturday 23 October.
How can I watch the T20 World Cup?
The warm up games as well as the first round of the T20 World Cup are available stream for free via Kayo Freebies.
Once the tournament proper starts, you can watch all the matches on Kayo.
History of the T20 World Cup
The first T20 World Cup was held in 2007 and this year’s will be the seventh edition.
T20 World Cups have traditionally been held every two years but it’s now been five years since the last tournament in 2016 (won by the West Indies) after a World Cup wasn’t held in 2018 and the 2020 tournament was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Sri Lanka is the most successful team in the short history of the T20 World Cup with two victories, while India, Pakistan and England have each lifted the trophy once.
What are Australia’s chances of winning?
While Australia has historically dominated the ODI format, winning the world cup five times, it has been comparatively starved of success in the shortest format of the game.
Australia’s best result at a T20 World Cup was in 2010 when it made the final on the back of Mike Hussey’s heroics, but ultimately finished runners-up to England.
The Aussies made the semi-finals in 2012 but have failed to progress past the group stage in the last two tournaments.
Realistically, a pass mark for Australia will be making the semi-finals of this year’s World Cup.
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What are the betting odds?
India is the favourite to win the World Cup, which is no surprise given they have the likes of Virat Kohli and bowling superstar Jasprit Bumrah as their disposal.
Australia is an outsider to win with the bookies, rated the fifth-likeliest team to win.
India: $3.50
England: $4.33
New Zealand: $6.50
West Indies: $7
Australia: $6.50
Pakistan: $9
South Africa: $13
Who is in Australia’s squad?
Aaron Finch (captain)
Ashton Agar
Dan Christian
Pat Cummins
Josh Hazlewood
Josh Inglis
Glenn Maxwell
Mitchell Marsh
Kane Richardson
Daniel Sams
Steve Smith
Mitchell Starc
Marcus Stoinis
Mitchell Swepson
Matthew Wade
David Warner
Adam Zampa
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