The fast and furious end to the T20 World Cup will open the door for Australian to rest players for a final pool match against Scotland but only if they secure passage to the next stage of the tournament with a win over Namibia on Wednesday.
That plan could also have an impact on England’s hopes of progressing to the Super 8s, with the defending champions winless through the opening two games, but Australian coach Andrew McDonald said that wasn’t his concern.
Australia could have to play five games in ten days, including a semi-final and a final, to lift the trophy for a second time in four years, with travel in between the second and third games as well, which McDonald said was something his outfit had to plan for.
Pat Cummins was rested for the opening match against Oman, having played 15 IPL games en route to the Caribbean, the same amount played by fast bowler Mitchell Starc, who was player of the final in Kolkata’s victory.
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With workload in mind, McDonald said managing his resources best was something the coaching staff had been focused on for some time, and while the best team possible would face Namibia on Wednesday, the result would shape plans moving forward.
“You plan for best-case scenario and you plan for worst-case scenario, so there’s plans based upon each scenario that will unfold,” he said
“Clearly, there’s a great challenge there for teams to navigate through the Super 8s and game – travel – game – travel – game. It’s going to be difficult in how you manage your resources and make sure they are ready to perform with short turnarounds. There’s a bit of an art to that.
“It may not necessarily be a locked 11 through that period for teams, and as I said, we’ve got Namibia in front of us first. That’s probably more coach chat in the background as to working through that with the players. They’re firmly focused on tomorrow’s game.”
England has to win its final two pool games against Namibia and Oman and then hope Australia beat Scotland convincingly to ensure the 2022 champs stay alive.
With net run-rate set to be the deciding factor, there is even a scenario where both sides could know the exact equation needed for each to go through at England’s expense.
But, despite lingering tensions between Australia and England from the 2023 Ashes, McDonald said England’s issues didn’t matter to him.
“Not really focused on England and where they’re at,” he said.
“We played them, we’ve moved past them and we’ll do what’s important to us within those games.”
AUSTRALIAN PATH TO T20 WORLD CUP GLORY
(should Australia finish top of Group B)
Pool matches
June 12: v Namibia, Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua
June 16: v Scotland, Darren Sammy Stadium, St Lucia
Super 8s
June 20: B1 v C2, Darren Sammy Stadium, St Lucia
June 22: B1 v D1, Darren Sammy Stadium, St Lucia
June 24, B1 v A2, Bridgetown, Barbados
Semi-finals
June 27 and 28, Tarouba and Providence
Final
June 30, Bridgetown, Barbados