Tim David says Australia’s blistering T20 starts haven’t been part of an orchestrated plan but rather the team leaning into the strengths of their top order batters.
Australia have been the most attacking team in the Powerplay overs since the end of the previous T20 World Cup, with a strike rate of 195.92 in the first six overs.
For teams who have played at least 10 T20s in that period, it’s streets ahead of the next-best England (168.84).
And the Aussies were at it again in the opening BKT Tires T20 against South Africa in Darwin, smacking 71 runs in the Powerplay, albeit for the loss of four wickets.
Even when captain Mitch Marsh was dismissed off the 19th ball of the innings and the hosts were wobbling at 3-30, David joined Cameron Green and counterattacked with a sizzling 40-run stand off 16 balls.
Marsh said earlier in the week Australia wanted to have David facing as many balls as possible, and when the Aussie No.5 walked to the crease at the 3.1 over mark, it was the earliest he had started his innings in his international career to date.
The home side continued to play aggressively until the loss of their sixth wicket, at which point (7.4 overs in) David and Ben Dwarshuis decided to rein it in order to prevent being bowled out.
But player of the match David insisted that the Aussies won’t tone down the aggression off the back of a few extra wickets lost in the Powerplay.
“We’ve been playing together as a group now for a while, so there’s not a great deal of instruction from the coaches,” David told reporters post-game.
“They trust the players.
“We trust ourselves to go out there and we understand the game situation and we make decisions on the fly, because that’s the nature of T20 cricket.
“I think if you’d watched our guys bat over the last period, wherever they bat around the world and when they play for the Australian team, it’s close to all guns blazing.
“So yeah, you can probably expect to see that a little bit from our team.
“That’s how we think we play best.”
After his 83 off 52 balls in Darwin, David now has 215 runs in his past three T20I innings, which includes his 37-ball century in St Kitts a fortnight ago.
The Singapore-born blaster is enjoying perhaps the best form of his career and it has many wondering if his 20-over form would translate to the 50-over format.
Compared to his 285 T20 matches, David has played just the 20 List A matches in his career; five for Singapore, 10 for Surrey, one for Tasmania and most recently, four ODIs for Australia on their tour of South Africa in 2023.
And the 29-year-old says returning to that set-up isn’t on his agenda.
“That’s not part of the plan for me,” David said.
“To be honest, the things I’ve been I’ve been building towards is the T20 World Cup next year and the major tournaments that are leading up to that.
“Honestly, I don’t operate much further than the next day ahead.
“But it’s a nice problem to have, because if I wasn’t scoring any runs, then you wouldn’t be asking that question.”
BKT Tyres T20I Series – Australia v South Africa
August 10: Australia won by 17 runs
August 12: Second T20I, Marrara Stadium, Darwin, 7pm AEST
August 16: Third T20I, Cazalys Stadium, Cairns, 7pm AEST
Australia T20 squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa
South Africa T20 squad: Aiden Markram (c), Corbin Bosch, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, George Linde, Kwena Maphaka, Senuran Muthusamy, Lungi Ngidi, Nqaba Peter, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen, Rassie van der Dussen
BKT Tyres ODI Series – Australia v South Africa
August 19: First ODI, Cazalys Stadium, Cairns, 2:30pm AEST
August 22: Second ODI, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 2:30pm AEST
August 24: Third ODI, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 2:30pm AEST
Australia ODI squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Lance Morris, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa
South Africa ODI squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Corbin Bosch, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Nandre Burger, Tony de Zorzi, Aiden Markram, Senuran Muthusamy, Keshav Maharaj, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Prenelan Subrayen
