Australia needs a specialist T20I coach

After three consecutive Twenty20 wins. Australia suddenly look better than they have for a long time in the shortest format.

But it can’t be forgotten this is against a vastly under-strength England side playing out of season.

Australia are missing only Mitchell Starc and perhaps Steve Smith from what would be their first-choice Twenty20 line-up. By comparison, England are without their two best T20 players – Ben Stokes and Joe Root – as well as another three cricketers who would be in their strongest XI in spin all-rounder Moeen Ali along with quicks Liam Plunkett and Chris Woakes.

Just as big a hindrance to England’s performance in this current tri-series is the timing of this contest.

While many of the Australians are primed by a long stint in the just-completed Big Bash League, the Englishmen mostly have come in cold in regards to T20 cricket with their own domestic competition having finished five months ago.

I make these points not to rob the Australians of credit for their trio of dominant wins over England and New Zealand. Rather, the intention is to put these victories into context.

The circumstances have been stacked so heavily in Australia’s favour in this series that they should be expected to produce such results.

(Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)

Were Australia’s Twenty20 team to land in Britain in September missing half their best XI and with most of their players not having played T20s in five months, they’d find it very tough to beat an England team filled with players coming off their domestic T20 tournament.

Australia’s commanding efforts this month should not distract from the fact they entered this series as the world’s seventh-ranked Twenty20 team, having won only two of their past seven series in the format.

Why have they underperformed for so long here? It’s not due to a lack of talent, as Australia has consistently produced high-quality T20 cricketers.

Instead, it has been the result of the shoddy management of Australia’s Twenty20 team. Cricket Australia have never seemed to take T20Is seriously, despite using the BBL as their domestic cash cow.

Too often Australia has used the Twenty20 team for experimentation, blooding cricketers who they saw as potential ODI or Test players, but whose credentials in the shortest format were badly lacking.

Just as poor has been the sometimes ridiculous scheduling of Twenty20 series, wedged into the calendar as apparent after-thoughts.

In recent years, Australia’s home Twenty20 series regularly have had clashes with matches in other formats. The most galling example was two years ago when Australia hosted India for a three-match Twenty20 series.

That series against an elite Twenty20 opponent should have been the perfect warm-up for Australia ahead of the World T20, which kicked off just one month after that series ended.

Instead, it was a shambles. India scored a 3-0 series win over Australia, who fielded an ordinary side due to an insane scheduling clash which saw most of the Australian ODI squad fly to New Zealand on the day of the final Twenty20 against India.

Not surprisingly, Australia flopped at the World T20, knocked out at the group stage after losing to India and New Zealand.

The scheduling of the current tri-series is not ideal given the final will overlap with Australia’s Test tour of South Africa. At least, however, there is a sense Cricket Australia have taken it more seriously by picking a strong team based on current form.

There are no project players in Australia’s Twenty20 squad, and every cricketer has earned their spot. Could this be the influence of stand-in Twenty20 coach Ricky Ponting, a man who knows and values the format more highly than the majority of senior figures in the Australian cricketing community?

(Photo by Ryan Pierse – CA/Cricket Australia/Getty Images)

Ponting has coached Mumbai in the IPL, will mentor Delhi this IPL season and has showcased his deep understanding of the game as a regular TV commentator on the BBL.

The batting legend is reportedly keen to become Australia’s Twenty20 coach and believes that the format requires a specialist coach.

Ponting clearly believes Australia need to professionalise their approach to T20Is. He told media this past week he would like to see Australia playing more T20Is, having their leading bowlers available to play the format more often and for Australia to establish a core group of Twenty20 players, rather than chopping and changing.

I agree with Ponting that T20 now requires a specialist coach. The format has gradually become more and more unique – with every match, it moves further away from Test cricket in terms of technique and tactics.

Australia surely would benefit from having a coach whose sole focus was on developing and honing the players and strategies required to become an elite Twenty20 team.