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Australia's T20 batting lineup is monstrous

2nd February, 2018
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Glenn Maxwell of Australia. (Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)
Expert
2nd February, 2018
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Australia’s lack of batting dynamism may have been exposed in ODIs, but they will start the Twenty20 tri-series today with a line-up overflowing with ballistic hitting power.

A ferocious top six, in batting order, of Chris Lynn, D’Arcy Short, David Warner, Aaron Finch, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis should be unleashed as that series starts today with Australia facing New Zealand in Sydney.

Although Warner and Finch have long been Australia’s first-choice opening combination in T20Is, both men have had success further down the order in the shortest format, so Chris Lynn and D’Arcy Short should be used at the top.

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Finch showcased his versatility during the past two IPLs when he batted at four or lower in 17 matches for Gujarat Lions and adapted brilliantly, making 450 runs at 32, with a blistering strike rate of 156.

The Victorian underlined he is not just a top order slugger who likes to tee off against the new ball, but that he also has the ability to guide his side’s innings through the middle overs against spin.

Warner, meanwhile, has batted at three or four at times in each of his past four IPL seasons and, like Finch, has proved he can expertly control the tempo of an innings through the middle to late overs.

The flexibility of Warner and Finch allows Australia to bat Lynn and Short in their preferred position as openers.

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Australia’s best XI for today’s match:
1. Chris Lynn
2. D’Arcy Short
3. David Warner
4. Aaron Finch
5. Glenn Maxwell
6. Marcus Stoinis
7. Alex Carey
8. Ashton Agar
9. Andrew Tye
10. Adam Zampa
11. Billy Stanlake

Short has been in extraordinary form at the top of the order for Hobart in the current BBL season, leading the competition in runs with 504 runs at 56, and a strike rate of 148.

The left hander has been remarkably destructive during the Power Play, blasting the ball through and over the in-field with ease.

Lynn, meanwhile, has long rode roughshod over the BBL, vaporising bowling attacks at will. Australian fans will be itching to see him unleash on international cricket, with Lynn having been limited to just five T20Is over the space of four years due to his fragile body.

Lynn and Short are as explosive an opening pair as exist in T20Is. If the fact they’re followed by two of the world’s best T20 batsmen in Warner and Finch isn’t intimidating enough, Australia then have two more muscular strikers at five and six in Maxwell and Stoinis.

Maxwell is the fastest-scoring batsman in the history of T20Is, with his jaw-dropping strike rate of 165 well clear of the next best – 157 by New Zealand’s Colin Munro

Glenn Maxwell

(Photo by Mark Nolan/Getty Images)

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Finch (strike rate of 148) and Warner (139) also feature prominently on that list, giving Australia three of the swiftest scoring batsmen T20Is have witnessed.

Joining Maxwell in the middle order is Australia’s ODI ‘Man of the Moment’ Marcus Stoinis. No Australian ODI batsman over the past year has struck the ball more cleanly and powerfully than Stoinis, who in that time has churned out 566 runs at 62, with a strike rate of 104.

His career T20 record is decidedly ordinary, with a batting average of 22 and a bowling average of 26. But then again Stoinis’ domestic record in 50-over cricket is poor, too, yet he’s been dominant in ODIs.

Based on his scorching touch in ODIs and in this BBL – 179 runs at 45, with a strike rate of 144 – it won’t surprise me if Stoinis excels in the tri-series.

Rounding out this power-laden batting order, at seven and eight, are this BBL’s second-leading runscorer Alex Carey and bowling all-rounder Ashton Agar, who has 149 runs at 50 in this BBL.

So Australia have not just a wealth of boundary-clearing ability, but also great depth. It may just be the most exciting batting unit Australia have ever fielded in a T20I.

Of course, that’s just on paper. All of this hype will mean nothing if Australia can’t finally gel as a team. Australia are ranked a lowly seventh in T20Is although, such is the volatility of these rankings, they could leap to as high as second if they perform strongly in this tri-series.

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Certainly they have no excuses on the batting front – if this top eight can’t succeed in T20Is then Australia are truly lost in this format.

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