NEW DELHI: Mitchell Marsh, who will lead Australia in their quest for an unprecedented treble of major global titles in the T20 World Cup in June, takes great pride in being the team’s captain.
With the squad announced on Wednesday, Marsh was officially named captain, capping an incredible recovery for the reserved all-rounder since his recall in the Ashes last season.
Leading the squad to series victories over New Zealand and the co-hosts of the Twenty20 World Cup, the West Indies, the 32-year-old has already proven to be a popular and effective captain.
His easygoing style fits in well with an Australian team that has accomplished remarkable things since losing fiery head coach Justin Langer.
Marsh claimed that his leadership will not significantly alter despite the selectors’ faith in him.
“One of the biggest things I’ve learnt is to not change too much,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of preparation and planning that goes into a World Cup and that’ll happen over the next month.
“But once we get there it’s (about) keeping everything nice and relaxed, keeping the environment good.”
As a result of his outstanding performances in the Ashes and Australia’s sixth one-day World Cup victory in India last year, Marsh was awarded Australia’s highest cricket accolade in January-the Allan Border medal.
With another victory in the United States and the Caribbean, Australia hopes to make history once more by becoming the first country to hold the worldwide T20, one-day, and Test championships simultaneously.
Despite being lighthearted during the news conference on Wednesday, Marsh donned a somber captain’s hat in response to a question regarding the triple bid.
“It’s not something we necessarily focus on as a group,” he said.
“It would never have been done before so that will be special but there’s so many things you’ve got to get through at a World Cup before you can even get a crack at that.
“That’s probably for the external noise … but I guess the carrot’s there.”
(With Reuters inputs)
With the squad announced on Wednesday, Marsh was officially named captain, capping an incredible recovery for the reserved all-rounder since his recall in the Ashes last season.
Leading the squad to series victories over New Zealand and the co-hosts of the Twenty20 World Cup, the West Indies, the 32-year-old has already proven to be a popular and effective captain.
His easygoing style fits in well with an Australian team that has accomplished remarkable things since losing fiery head coach Justin Langer.
Marsh claimed that his leadership will not significantly alter despite the selectors’ faith in him.
“One of the biggest things I’ve learnt is to not change too much,” he told reporters on Wednesday.
“Obviously, there’s a lot of preparation and planning that goes into a World Cup and that’ll happen over the next month.
“But once we get there it’s (about) keeping everything nice and relaxed, keeping the environment good.”
As a result of his outstanding performances in the Ashes and Australia’s sixth one-day World Cup victory in India last year, Marsh was awarded Australia’s highest cricket accolade in January-the Allan Border medal.
With another victory in the United States and the Caribbean, Australia hopes to make history once more by becoming the first country to hold the worldwide T20, one-day, and Test championships simultaneously.
Despite being lighthearted during the news conference on Wednesday, Marsh donned a somber captain’s hat in response to a question regarding the triple bid.
“It’s not something we necessarily focus on as a group,” he said.
“It would never have been done before so that will be special but there’s so many things you’ve got to get through at a World Cup before you can even get a crack at that.
“That’s probably for the external noise … but I guess the carrot’s there.”
(With Reuters inputs)