Australia are bracing for a trial by spin on wearing Caribbean pitches that will decide whether Mitch Marsh’s men can become the first team to become world champions of all three formats.
With Afghanistan joining India in securing their spot in the Aussies’ Super Eight group this week, Bangladesh will take the fourth and final place if they beat Nepal on Sunday (Monday morning AEST).
It will leave Australia facing three Asian teams traditionally reliant on spin to win on surfaces expected to take more turn as the tournament progresses.
Antigua’s Sir Vivian Richards Stadium is known to this Australian side after they flogged Namibia there earlier this week, but its complexion may have changed when they return for the venue’s third game in five days in their likely match-up with Bangladesh next week.
From there, Afghanistan awaits them in remote St Vincent, whose airport-side ground is being used for its first international matches in a decade. In the two games played there so far – Bangladesh’s victory over Netherlands and South Africa’s thrilling escape against Nepal – spin has captured 19 of the 27 wickets to fall.
The Arnos Vale oval will be hosting its third game in eight days for Australia’s match against an opponent who they needed a Glenn Maxwell miracle to overcome during the ODI World Cup last year.
And while they face India in St Lucia at what Matthew Wade on Friday labelled one of the Caribbean’s more batter-friendly venues, the Daren Sammy Stadium will be hosting its sixth game in nine days for the crunch fixture.
“Coming here a lot of us have prepared for plenty of spin depending on what venue you get to,” Wade told reporters in St Lucia where the Aussies play Scotland in a final group-stage contest that has nothing at stake for them.
“I know here’s a good wicket, I think this might be the venue we play India at so that’ll be nice.
“But, yeah, we’re going to get a heap of spin.
“Guys have been preparing for that through (around) the world, through IPL into the start of this World Cup. So, we expect nothing different.
“They’re all, on their day, going to be very, very hard teams to beat. We’re all expecting them to hit us with a fair bit of spin over the next little bit.”
Predicting how pitches will play for those quick-fire trio of matches being played in the space of six days is hardly an exact science.
Equally difficult to get a read on has been the form of the leading slow bowlers of Australia’s opponents.
The orthodox spin of Shakib Al Hasan has troubled them in the past but a neck issue has hampered Bangladesh’s star allrounder, who is wicketless in the tournament so far.
Shakib, whose 64no with the bat against the Netherlands put his side on the brink of qualification, has played second fiddle with the ball to 21-year-old leggie Rishad Hossain, Bangladesh’s leading wicket-taker with seven scalps at 12.42.
Afghanistan have historically relied on a strong spin attack led by Rashid Khan but it has been their main paceman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, who has been the World Cup’s most prolific bowler with 12 victims at the astonishing average of 3.50.
Fellow quick Naveen-ul-Haq has four wickets at 4.50, but crafty quartet Rashid, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Noor Ahmad and Mohammad Nabi are poised to come into their own when conditions suit.
India’s left-arm tweakers Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel meanwhile have largely watched on as their pacemen have run riot on seam-friendly surfaces in New York, with Jadeja having bowled just three overs in as many matches.
Regardless of their opponents, Australia believe their well-gelled group of batters can take down any attack in the world.
Wade saved his career during their triumphant 2021 T20 World Cup campaign when he put his side into the tournament decider with a clutch semi-final innings against Pakistan.
It solidified a batting line-up that has hardly changed since (the addition of Tim David aside) and has seen its lower-order firepower steadily improve.
“I’ve really enjoyed it over the last three years,” said Australia’s No.7 Wade. “2021 is when I made the move down there and I’d done a lot of it as a younger player for Victoria, so I was pretty comfortable going down the order.
“Just the connections that we’ve got down there now with David and (Marcus) Stoinis and myself.
“(Coach) Andrew McDonald said three years ago that he wanted to try and keep us together and create a combination there and I feel like, three years down the track, we’re still developing that and we’re getting better at that every time.
“You go in, you’ve got (Glenn) Maxwell going, Stoinis going, you’ve got Timmy going … getting to know those guys and what they need at the end and vice versa has been really fun and a challenge that I probably needed late in my career.
“I’ve really enjoyed it and fingers crossed we can win a few more games.”
2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
Australia’s squad: Mitch Marsh (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Australia’s Group B fixtures
June 6: Beat Oman by 39 runs
June 9: Beat England by 36 runs
June 12: Beat Namibia by nine wickets
June 16: v Scotland, Daren Sammy Stadium, St Lucia, 10.30am AEST
Super Eight fixtures opponents to be confirmed
21 June: v D2, Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua, 10.30am AEST
23 June: v Afghanistan, Arnos Vale Ground, St Vincent, 10.30am AEST
25 June: v India, Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, St Lucia, 12.30am AEST
Semi-finals to follow if Australia qualify
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