Australia’s five-match T20I series in New Zealand next month, which clashes with their Test tour of South Africa, is a gilded chance to trial rookies Tanveer Sangha, Chris Green and Wes Agar ahead of this year’s T20 World Cup.
The Aussie Test squad is expected to fly to South Africa in late February, which means they’ll have to pick a separate T20I squad for the series against the Kiwis, which starts on February 22.
This means that Australia will be missing roughly half of their regular T20I starting XI in NZ, with Steve Smith, David Warner, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood all likely to be touring SA.
Fringe T20I players Moises Henriques and Mitchell Swepson are also a very strong chance of touring SA, with Australia expected to pick a huge Test squad due to the difficulty of flying in replacements amid the pandemic.
My Australian T20I starting line-up and squad for the five-match series in New Zealand:
1. Aaron Finch (captain)
2. Marcus Stoinis
3. Glenn Maxwell
4. Ben McDermott
5. Mitch Marsh
6. Josh Philippe (wicketkeeper)
7. Dan Christian
8. Jhye Richardson
9. Chris Green
10. Adam Zampa
11. Kane Richardson
Reserves
12. Josh Inglis
13. Daniel Sams
14. Wes Agar
15. Tanveer Sangha
The left-field choice in my 15-man squad is Tanveer Sangha. Hear me out. The 19-year-old is extremely green, having made professional cricketing debut just six weeks ago.
Tanveer Sangha has been a revelation in the BBL. (Photo by Jason McCawley – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)
If Australia were picking a full-strength T20I squad right now then Sangha would be well behind the likes of Zampa, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Swepson, Nathan Lyon and Chris Green.
But three of those bowlers will very likely be unavailable to play NZ, with Lyon and Swepson expected to be touring SA, and Ashton Agar injured.
Beyond those five spinners I listed, the pickings are slim. Fawad Ahmed and Steve O’Keefe are doing solid jobs in the BBL but are 38 and 36 years old respectively. They are not long-term prospects, quite clearly, and also are very unlikely to feature in this year’s T20 World Cup in India in October.
This is why the prodigiously talented Sangha should tour NZ. Even if he didn’t play a game in NZ, he would benefit from taking part in an international tour.
Australia like to play two front-line spinners in T20Is, so they need a third spinner as a back-up to Zampa and Green. Sangha’s the man.
The starting XI contains seven obvious picks – Finch, Stoinis, Maxwell, Marsh, Zampa and the two Richardsons. The other four slots in the starting XI have gone to less experienced players who can challenge for spots in Australia’s T20 World Cup squad.
Batting at four in my line-up, McDermott has good recent and long-term form in the shortest format. As of yesterday he was second on the BBL run-scorer’s list for this season and has averaged 37 at a strike rate of 131 across the past three BBL seasons.
McDermott has underwhelmed in his brief T20I career for Australia but at 26 years old he appears to be blossoming as a cricketer across all three formats. His wide range of strokes and devastating power made him a worthwhile investment.
The same goes for Philippe.
Josh Philippe. (Brett Hemmings – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)
It was a toss-up for the starting gloveman spot between him and another Perth product in Josh Inglis. The latter is quite clearly the superior keeper. What seduced me about Philippe is his rare ability against spin, keeping in mind that slow bowling will likely define this year’s World Cup on Indian pitches.
Australia have a brilliant and vastly experienced top four in T20Is – Finch, Warner, Smith and Maxwell. What they have lacked for years now are middle-order batsmen who are confident and fluent against spin.
Henriques is a good option in this regard, but he was in Australia’s Test squad against India and probably will tour SA instead of going to NZ for the T20Is.
Philippe has batted mostly in the top order in T20s. But as a modern, 360-degree batsman, who is hyper-aggressive against pace and nimble and destructive against spin, he has the tools to transition to the middle order.
Australia’s top four appears set in stone for the World Cup, and they favour playing five bowlers, which means their keeper will need to bat at five or six. Alex Carey, who I expect to tour SA with the Test squad, has been Australia’s first-choice T20 keeper for almost three years now but has a very poor batting record, averaging 12 at a dawdling strike rate of 117.
Australia need greater explosiveness from their T20I keeper, and either Philippe or Inglis could potentially provide that.
Such dynamism is also what appeals to me about Christian. Specialist middle-over hitters are thin on the ground the world over. That’s because franchises tend to play their best strikers in the top four.
Christian, meanwhile, has become a specialist middle-order finisher, batting at five or six for the Sydney Sixers this season while averaging 30 at a ballistic strike rate of 191.
Among the top 30 run-scorers in the BBL this season, he and Daniel Sams are the only players with strike rates above 160. Christian also offers a handy sixth bowling option and is good in the field.
(Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images)
With an eye on this year’s World Cup, I’m also attracted by Christian’s massive experience across a huge range of countries. No current Australian cricketer has played more T20 matches than Christian’s giant haul of 338 games.
Crucially, he has played a whopping 67 matches in Asia, across various franchise leagues, including 40 IPL appearances.
Experience overseas is also a factor in my selection of Chris Green. Of Green’s 104 career T20 matches, 46 have been played in franchise leagues in the Caribbean, England, India and UAE.
Together with his skills as a defensive T20 spinner, that makes him a good choice to partner Zampa in the starting line-up against NZ.
Rounding out Australia’s starting T20 attack should be the two Richardsons. Jhye is tearing the BBL to pieces, with 21 wickets at 11 up to yesterday.
Kane, meanwhile, has been in terrific touch for Australia in this format, taking 13 wickets at 17 from his last ten matches, with a great economy of 7.0 runs per over.
Rounding out my squad are Sams, whose consistent dominance of BBL deserves rewarding, and 23-year-old quick Wes Agar.
A natural strike bowler, Agar has taken 28 wickets at 19 across the past two BBL seasons. He is one of a big group of newcomers who deserve opportunities during Australia’s five-match T20I series against NZ next month.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
You mean Wade had another innings? Surprise, surprise! The numbers change again. Inglis had an average of 40 two days ago. The keeping is observational. A keeper shouldn't get credit for a bowler getting an edge. Misses? Wade wins that one, Philippe second with Inglis and Carey making least errors.
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
That stats on Inglis's batting were 100% correct at the time of writing. Now that he's made 12 in his 14th match, his season numbers are 322 runs at ave 29.27. All 4 of the above players had poor batting matches in last night's final round. As you can see, I believe stats are important (although not everything). If you know of any reputable stats on "clean gloves", please provide - I'm happy to peruse. The only wicketkeeping stat provided by ESPNcricinfo is dismissals per innings, and it has Carey at no. 1, Philippe 2 and Inglis 3, which is probably the order in which they are rated by the Australian selectors (judging by selections to date). There is no bonus for coming from Western Australia or even Freo!
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Your average is wrong for Inglis. Where are your stats on the clean gloves? Funny about that.
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
BBL batting stats this season: M Wade: 2 matches, 92 runs, ave 46.0, SR 184 B McDermott: 11 matches, 401 runs, ave 41.1, SR 140 J Philippe: 13 matches, 453 runs, ave 34.8, SR 150 J Inglis: 13 matches, 310 runs, ave 31.0, SR 139 Yes, Inglis is having a good season, but whether one orders by average or strike-rate, he's no. 4 amongst these 4.
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
I wonder what the BBL batting stats for this season say? Here's the answer: https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/records/batting/highest_career_batting_average.html?id=13692;type=tournament ... Inglis has both the lowest average and the lowest strike rate of these four players. So yes, it is a real struggle to understand the claim that he's "the better batsman"!
mrrexdog
Roar Guru
Why? NSWs 1st choice spinner Lyon will be with the test squad in South Africa NSW 2nd choice spinner Zampa will be with the T20 squad in New Zealand. NSW will be down to their 3rd choice spinner if not Sangha, who else will they pick?
Fox
Roar Guru
Yep the umpires and groundsmen are padding up now!
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Sangha is not getting a Shield game. He'll need to wait.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
The reason Inglis would be selected ahead of Philippe, McDermott and Wade is that he is the better keeper and the better batsman. That should help your "struggle".
Greg Russell
Roar Guru
Hi Ronan, contrary to your proposed squad, I find it very hard to imagine that any of Wade, Tye, Behrendorff and Ashton Agar will miss out on the NZ tour, unless they are injured (Agar?) or in South Africa (Wade?). Wade's commanding innings at the MCG last night - probably just after you completed this article? - reminds of why he'll still be in the T20 squad even if he's dropped from the test squad (but D'Arcy Short is a different matter!). Although I have some time for Inglis, I struggle to see why he would be selected if there are already 2 or 3 glovemen on tour (Philippe, McDermott and possibly Wade). Only rarely do the Australian selectors go for players of really advanced age, so I strongly suspect Sams will be preferred over Christian. Lastly, Jordan Silk's batting form this BBL season (ave 33.00 at SR 145) and his extraordinary out-fielding must make him an outside chance of selection for NZ. He's quite literally worth 8-10 runs just through his fielding!
matth
Roar Guru
Looking through the BBL performance so far, plus who will be available (i.e. not flying to SA), I'd go with: Finch (c) Phillipe Stoinis McDermott Maxwell Carey Christian Kane Richardson Zampa Billy Stanlake - still developing, has experience and a better average and strike rate this year than Meredith Behrendorrf M Marsh Turner - he's worth persisting with and his figures of 184 runs at a trike rate of over 158 have been good for an explosive finisher. Tye Sams Smokies: Jordan Silk - I know it's left field but he's turned himself into a decent middle order finisher and we have few of those. Wes Agar Peter Siddle - if they want a old head to go with the kids, is there anyone better? Inglis - with Carey and Phillipe, is he needed? I would actually love to see him tour SA, as he could be our next red ball keeper. Jhye Richardson will likely be on the place to SA. Maxwell should too, but that's another story...
Brisguy51
Roar Rookie
I would add Jimmy Pierson to the squad. A experienced wicket keeper and is in great form.
dan ced
Guest
Finch is not in form, so he does not get picked. I would have Stoinis, Christian, Sams, Wildermuth, Henriques and more above Mitch Marsh for a spot. He rarely delivers, and gets injured anyway. I'm stuck between form, youth and experience. You have people like Siddle, Christian, and O'Keefe in form and warranting selection in the squad.. do you stick with the T20 youth policy or start taking it seriously? I generally temper expectation of young sloggers.. but I would try Phillpe out, reward the form.. drop if he fizzles. My XI (considering the Test clash) Phillipe, Stoinis/Henriques, Ferguson, McDermott, Weatherald, Christian, Sams, W.Agar, Siddle, Steketee, Zampa/O'Keefe.
Gee
Roar Rookie
Kane Richardson is injured & I suspect Jyhe will be going to South Africa. Abbott, Berendorff or Tye likely to come in. Also in that starting 11 I would have Inglis for Stoinis, Philippe is an awful keeper & Stoinis is a proven dud at international level.
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
Players will live in a bubble.. There will be no spectators allowed.. Sri Lanka just toured without incident.. I’m not that concerned about the physical health of players dunno about mental health living in isolation so long.. There is a 9pm curfew so no restaurants etc. but playing a Test series against Aus which is always our biggest cricket event doesn’t feel right with no crowds. I live 40 min driving distance from Centurion and The Wanderers but have to watch on TV. It should be rescheduled in Australia.. We can always switch next tour..
Just Nuisance
Roar Rookie
Is there something I'm missing.. Who scheduled simultaneous tours..? Surely that's avoidable..
Carlin
Roar Rookie
Green seems to be a real basic cricket. I do not think he is that flash but must be doing something right to be playing cricket all over the world. I am not sure he is up to playing International cricket but could be wrong if he gets a go.
Dexter The Hamster
Roar Rookie
I reckon Chris Green does his best work after dark. Good looking rooster!!!!
Tom
Sangha should stay in Australia and play Shield
Andrew
Guest
I'd put Jhye in even if he's only doing 4 over bursts. We should have enough bowlers to cover the workload.