The Australia-South Africa three match T20 series saw excellent cricket by both teams. South Africa went 1-nil up, and then Australia showed their class by winning the series with two difficult chases of 204 and 178.
Before this series, hosts India could justifiably be considered favourites for T20 World Cup. After all they had defeated Australia 3-nil in Australia and won 10 of their last 11 T20 Internationals.
Their batting order looks settled, so much so, even Ainkya Rahane is sitting out. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are in sublime touch. Dangerous player Yuvraj Singh is getting back his rhythm and Skipper MS Dhoni rediscovering his smile, calmness and confidence. Bowling wise too, mystery bowler Jasprit Bumrah has helped them, and spin twins Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are likely to do well in home conditions.
Yet, the Aussie series win will definitely ring alarm bells in the Indian camp. Here’s why.
The Aussie batting line up is frighteningly good. So much so that they can’t find a way to play both Aaron Finch and Shane Watson in the playing 11. Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitch Marsh, James Faulkner – all are certainties and this batting line up will send shivers down the back of any opposition.
Warner at No.4 promises to be a captaincy masterstroke, if initial results are any reflection. His first match at No.4 saw him score 77 off 40 balls as Australia chased down 200. His second match saw him score a 33 off 27 in a comfortable chase of 179.
As for Maxwell, nothing is impossible for him. ‘The big show’ can conjure up 6s and 4s from nowhere. No target is safe whenl he is at the crease. He is also familiar with most grounds in India, being an IPL regular. Mohali is the home ground for him, where Australia meet India on 27th March, one extra reason for India to beware.
Australia have the batting firepower to outbat any opposition while setting a target. Chasing was a perceived weakness with only a few good chases for wins. Therefore the two wins in South Africa will hold them in good stead. Fielding is spectacular, and bowling extremely steady as well. They almost succeeded in defending 157, with only a David Miller special getting South Africa a win.
The South African performance will also give them confidence. They defeated a strong English side in T20 and held their own against the Aussies. Faf du Plessis and Quinton de Kock are in form and Hashim Amla showed how good he is with an unbeaten 97 in the third T20 versus Australia. Miller and Morris are players who can win a match from nowhere. Hence South Africa too is a team to look out for. England too are a tough team, and I would term South Africa and England the dark horses.
India needs to be careful, because all of their opposition is tough. They have only one easy match versus a qualifier. Then apart from Australia, they meet the dangerous Kiwis at Nagpur and the unpredictable Pakistanis at Eden Gardens. Granted, the vociferous home crowd support will help, but past venue record at Eden is against India, as they have lost all four ODIs they have played here versus Pakistan. Lively Mohali versus Australia will be challenging too.
Still, considering their recent performances, India I feel are deserving favourites to become the world T20 champions. The second and joint favourites according to me are Australia, with an added motivation that this is the only cup which has eluded them.
Will the new T20 world Champions be Dhoni’s India, or Smith’s Aussies? We will know soon.
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