T20 World Cup, Australia cricket team: Strengths and Weaknesses of Aussie squad

Australia will eye redemption when they begin their T20 World Cup campaign against South Africa on October 23 at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dabhi. Though the Aussies have been a formidable side and have won World Cups in the past, they have failed to win the coveted T20 World Cup since its inception back in 2007.

The Australians closest chance to winning the trophy came back in 2010 but they were beaten by England in the finals and ended up runners-up. The Australians like any other team have sent a competitive side for the mega event, but there is a cause of concern given the dip in the team's performance in the last five series, where they were beaten by England, then India, followed by New Zealand, West Indies and Bangladesh. 

With five back-to-back series defeats the Australian team has now lost 15 of their 21 T20Is and doesn't look positive for the side that is looking at winning its maiden T20 World Cup trophy. The team has a lot of issues to address before they take the field on the October 23. 

Captain Aaron Finch hasn't played a lot of competitive cricket in recent times having suffered a knee injury against the West Indies and has been away ever since. His opening pair David Warner had a poor run of form at the IPL 2021 which saw him lose his place in the squad. 

The team however have Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis in the middle order. Steve Smith was not a regular in the IPL 2021 owing to team combination, but the batter is a great player of spin and will adjust to the UAE conditions with ease. Marcus Stoinis too had a decent IPL 2021 but the player will have more pressure this time around given Australia's lower-middle order concerns. Apart from Glenn Maxwell, none of the batters have been consistent in the recent times.  

Team Australia's biggest strength will be their pace attack comprising of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc and  Kane Richardson. Their seamers have great pace and variations in their bags and are all capable bowlers up front and at the death. The team also has Ashton Agar, Adam Zampa and Mitchell Swepson who can be handy on the slow UAE surfaces. 

Australia T20 WC squad

Aaron Finch (C), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins (VC), Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa.

Travelling reserves: Dan Christian, Nathan Ellis, Daniel Sams

Image: AP