Squeeze will be on for batting spots for Australia’s T20 team in three-match series in NZ
At least one of Australia’s middle-order heavyweights will prove the odd man out when Mitch Marsh’s side kickstarts its whirlwind T20 tour of New Zealand on Wednesday night.
The 2021 T20 world champs are across the ditch for three matches in four days at the back-end of this week, all to be played at Mount Maunganui on the North Island. And with the returns of Marcus Stoinis and Matt Short, they have brought with them a surplus of batting powerhouses.
Test and ODI gloveman Alex Carey, 34, is also set to come into the side in place of the injured Josh Inglis, and whether he adds to the lower-middle order logjam or lines up at No.3 remains to be seen.
With a T20 World Cup only around four months away, national selectors have kept their faith in 36-year-olds Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell, while Short is again in the mix after recovering from a side strain he picked up in the Caribbean.
Then there’s Tim David, the short-format freelancer whose form demands selection and who looms as a serious wild card at the upcoming World Cup, having blasted the fastest international hundred by an Australian – from 37 balls – against West Indies in the winter.
“It’s obviously a great problem to have,” said Mitch Owen, who made 50 on his national debut against the Windies in July. “You can’t fit every batter in, but whoever misses out or whatever happens, we’ve got that power and strength that’s exciting, and people want to come and watch.
“Whatever way it falls, it’s going to be good fun. Everybody’s got that backing and belief of every player, so it’s a good spot to be in.”
Australia overpowered New Zealand 3-0 when the two sides met in their most recent T20I series, back in February 2024, but the visitors have never played at Tauranga’s Bay Oval.
Owen though liked the look of the venue’s short boundaries, before insisting he and his teammates would be sticking to their individual approaches when they hit the middle, regardless of the scoreboard; a method that seems to have worked for Australia, whose ultra-aggressive batting policy has seen them win 14 of their past 16 matches.
“It looks pretty small,” he said. “Apparently it gets pretty windy though, so I’m sure it’ll be a nice hit one way, and maybe a bit of a tougher hit the other way.
“Everyone has their game plan with how they want to go about it, and what’s so good about this team is the coaches and senior players back the individuals to go about it the way they want to.
“Obviously we’ve got some quite aggressive players and it’s going to happen where we lose early wickets, but we’ve got that much talent and skill down the order that we can dig our way out of those situations.”
Qantas Tour of New Zealand
First T20: October 1, Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 4:15pm AEST
Second T20: October 3, Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 4:15pm AEST
First T20: October 4, Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, 4:15pm AEST
New Zealand squad: Michael Bracewell (c), Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Matt Henry, Bevon Jacobs, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Robinson, Ben Sears, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi
Australia squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
All matches live via Kayo Sports and Foxtel
