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After an undefeated tri-series, Australia look to be in good touch ahead of the World Cup. But what else did we learn from the tournament?
1. Australia deserve World Cup favouritism
Australia’s strength in the ODI format can be summed up in one word – resources.
Australia have the players to drag themselves to a strong position from any scenario, and nowhere was this more evident than in Sunday’s final.
Australia were in trouble at 4/60 and looking fragile, before Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh consolidated then accelerated. The platform they built allowed for James Faulkner’s late explosive hitting, and a precarious position became a winning one.
Similarly, in Australia’s bowling innings, Faulkner had to leave with an injury halfway through his third over. It mattered not, as Australia had the bowling depth to cover for Faulkner’s absence, with Maxwell taking crucial wickets in a 112-run win.
Australia have enough multi-faceted players that they have the resources to cover for seemingly any situation. They’re blessed with high-class all rounders in Faulkner, Maxwell, Marsh and Shane Watson who can bat in the top seven and take wickets. This allows the luxury of gifted hitters like Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc batting as low as nine or ten.
It’s this all-round depth that makes Australia deserving favourites for the upcoming World Cup.
2. England aren’t as bad as we thought
In England’s series against Sri Lanka, they looked like a side that had lost touch with the ODI format. They fell to a 5-2 series loss with batting a major concern – scores of 300 seemed beyond them.
However, they made some adjustments before the trip to Australia. Captain Alastair Cook’s struggles in this format took their toll, and he stood down. This allowed Ian Bell and Moeen Ali to form an opening partnership, followed by a strong middle order including Joe Root, new captain Eoin Morgan and big hitting wicketkeeper Jos Buttler.
Bowling is England’s real strength though: James Anderson’s frugal accuracy and Steven Finn’s steepling bounce will be complemented by Ali’s canny off-spin, an attack that should do well in Australian conditions.
Obviously they still have concerns; Ravi Bopara’s struggles at six are well documented and they tend to struggle for acceleration in the latter overs – labouring to just 303 from 0/113 in the 18th over in Hobart a case in point – but they’re not going to struggle in the World Cup as much as it appeared they would even two months ago.
They may even manage to avoid their customary defeat to a minnow.
3. India set to struggle at the World Cup
India ended the tri-series winless, struggling in Australian conditions against both teams.
Their batting looked fragile, with collapses in all of their completed games, the worst being a run of 6/31 in their last game – a game they had to win to make the final. The fact that England bowled them out in both of their games will also be of major concern.
As usual though, the main problem for India is their bowling. Only one of their bowlers took more than two wickets in the series – Stuart Binny, with four. Of course, this stat is warped slightly by the Australia Day washout in Sydney, but the fact is India’s bowlers are simply not threatening enough.
They also went for too many runs – each wicket India took in the series cost them 44.71 runs. By way of contrast, England averaged 27.8 for every wicket taken, while the figure for Australia was 27.34.
Of course, the current World Cup format is designed to usher the big teams through to the quarter-final phase. However, with India’s myriad issues in both disciplines, it’s difficult to imagine they’ll be making any progress beyond that.
4. Forget Michael Clarke, James Faulkner is the real injury concern
The Australian camp will praying the side strain that forced James Faulkner off during his third over in the final will be minor and that he can still play a part in the World Cup.
Faulkner plays a crucial role in Australia’s ODI side. His lower order bludgeoning is invaluable when setting a target, and while Channel Nine giving him the moniker ‘The Finisher’ overcooks it a bit, he excels at closing out a chase. His average of 48 places him firmly among the elite category of one-day batsmen.
Faulkner is also a world-class ODI bowler. His ability to to take the pace off the ball in the death overs makes him a daunting prospect for opposition batsmen, and means he is lethal at the back end of both innings.
Faulkner comfortably outperformed the other all-rounders in the series, averaging 100 with the bat and taking six wickets at an average of 30.33.
In contrast, India’s Stuart Binny made 51 runs at 25.5 and took 4 wickets at 16.75, while England’s Ravi Bopara made 57 runs at 14.25 and curiously only bowled three wicketless overs in the series for the cost of 24 runs.
Faulkner is one of the Australia’s most important players, and they will be sweating profusely on his fitness.
5. Glenn Maxwell should be the frontline spinner at the World Cup
Maxwell is surely Australia’s most divisive cricketer. And while his inclusion in the squad is the subject of much debate in front bars nation-wide, the fact that he’s only missed one of Australia’s ODIs in the last year says that he’s nailed on to play in the World Cup.
The issue for the selectors is how best to utilise him. Maxwell’s destructive force can be an important weapon if harnessed correctly. The best way to do this is to take the pressure of his batting.
Fortunately Maxwell has another skill set to call on. His off-spin, while not exactly venomous, is more than good enough for Australian pitches, especially given the attacking capabilities of Australia’s quicks.
If Maxwell can get through his overs without giving away too many runs and occasionally claim wickets, it will take significant pressure off the batting side of his game.
The tactic worked a treat in the final of the series, with Maxwell snaring 4/46 in his nine overs to go with the 95 he made in the first innings, underlining his game-changing potential if he’s utilised correctly.
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