World Cup Teams Watch - Australia: The juggernaut that never stops

When we talk about cricket World Cups, no team can come close to the formidable force called Australia, the most successful side in cricket for more than a century now. Not only have the Aussies redefined and reshaped the game time and time again, but come the grandest stage of all, ever since their takeover at the 1987 World Cup, since then they have been the overlords in the much-talked about tournament and the traditions feel no different this time.

When it comes to the history of the World Cup, Australia have clinched the trophy a staggering five times - a feat that also featured a hattrick in 1999, 2003 and 2007, an era where the Australian team almost turned into an unstoppable machine. Apart from these three editions, Australia also clinched the silverware in 1987, and also in 2015, when they won the World Cup on home soil. In 2019, despite a fine showdown in the group stages, the Aaron Finch-led contingent were razed to dust by the inexorable juggernaut of England.

The best part of Australia is that irrespective of how bleak the proceedings may look like ahead of the World Cup, when the tournament hits the shelves, they have this knack of smashing their strides in the most glorious fashion ever. Particularly in the group stages, the Men in Yellow turn into an insuperable unit and in most cases is able to transition that same momentum into the knockouts.

Recent Form:

The last couple of ODI series in which Australia participated ended in a fiasco for Pat Cummins and his men. September started with a showdown against South Africa where the Aussies did secure a 2-0 lead in a five-match series but were soon to succumb to the Proteas as the latter staged a miraculous turnaround, clinching the series victory 3-2.

A few days later, the Australian caravan arrived in India but found themselves in choppy waters as the hosts of the grand cricketing fiesta’s latest edition outran them in the first two games while Cummins’ all-firing unit managed to salvage a consolation victory in a dead rubber in the 3rd ODI. The first warm-up game that Australia could at least be a part of before rain played spoilsport saw their famed batting unit wobbling against the Netherlands while Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell offered them hope with a good bowling effort. 

However, that same batting unit came up trumps against Pakistan as Glenn Maxwell led the charge with a superlative 77 while Cameron Green and Josh Inglis proved to be instrumental as well. Despite going for 78 runs from his allotment of 8.4 overs, Labuschagne clinched a three-fer to skittle Pakistan out for a warring 337.

X-Factors:

Glenn Maxwell:

With Australia’s spin options being handful for the upcoming tournament and Adam Zampa being the solitary regular spinner in the squad, Australia will rely heavily on Glenn Maxwell to run through with at least five to six overs in an innings. The RCB all-rounder was impressive against India in the series finale as he bagged the Player of the Match award for his four-fer but he didn’t get a chance to roll his arms against Netherlands as rain played spoilsport. However, considering the Indian conditions and the kind of all-round flair that Maxwell brings to the table, particularly with his explosive batting in the middle-order, he certainly becomes someone to watch out for. Cue his blistering 77 against Pakistan in the latest warm-up game and the world will know better than to write him off.

Mitchell Starc:

When it comes to feared left-arm seamers, Mitchell Starc certainly is being labelled as one of the most threatening contenders in world cricket right now. Irrespective of the format, the ace Australian quick is a ravaging option when it comes to making the ball snake early up in the powerplay. An absolute menace with the new ball, Starc also claimed a hat-trick against Netherlands and despite it being a warm-up match and the opposition being a part of the associate nations, yet those deliveries that he bowled would leave any batter with sleepless nights for eons to come. That same inswinger which he bowled James Vince with in the 2017 Ashes was what proved to be the unravelling for Max O’Dowd, Wesley Barresi and Bas de Leede and Starc will have a massive role to play come the World Cup.

Marnus Labuschagne:

Marnus Labuschagne was a late addition to the Australian side after Ashton Agar failed to make the cut for the national team owing to an injury. Surprisingly, Marnus has been a fine study of stepping up whenever the opportunity presents itself to him, ever since that day against Jofra Archer after Steve Smith was knocked over by a menacing bumper. Right from the time he was being thrown in the mix with the news of Agar still to be confirmed, he has been sparking ripples. With 283 runs against South Africa that was inclusive of an unbeaten 80 and a blistering 124, he topped that up with a sensational 72 against India before smashing a quickfire 40 against Pakistan. The last couple of matches also saw him clinching four wickets, an option that makes him a valuable addition to the lean spinning side of the Roos.

Areas to work on:

When it comes to Australia, you would hardly find any particular area to be pinpointed but if there has been one particular side of the Aussies which can prove to be a spot of bother is their inconsistency over the recent days. After securing a 2-0 lead against South Africa, they threw it all away while against India it was just a consolation victory that they could manage. Similarly, the same batting unit that turned wobbly against the Netherlands went on free-fire against Pakistan. If they can fix this consistency part, they will be a tough unit to take down.

Squad for World Cup:

Pat Cummins (C), David Warner, Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh, Steven Smith, Marnus Labuschagne, Alex Carey (WK), Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Marcus Stoinis, Sean Abbott, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa.