Australia’s Strange World Cup Start: Playing the Long Game
When you embark on a campaign, you anticipate setbacks along the way. Every epic tale featuring a group of resilient characters invariably includes moments of adversity to drive the narrative and add dramatic depth. For Australia’s cricket team, the opening World Cup clash against India might have been a calculated sacrifice, a necessary dip in a larger story arc.
This charitable perspective offers some explanation for an unusual start to the tournament. It’s not strange in terms of the result or how the match unfolded, but rather in how the situation was set up initially. While it’s a longstanding cricket tradition to scrutinize the bowlers in response to a poor batting performance, Australia’s configuration for this match hinted at a lack of clarity.
Picture this: you’re preparing for a game in Chennai, a venue known for its crumbling, turning, slow, and challenging pitches. Your squad includes numerous IPL players who are familiar with these conditions. Additionally, your opponent boasts three quality spinners. What’s your response? You select your best fast bowling attack, featuring Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood, as if you were playing on a bouncy Gabba wicket.
Yes, the fast bowlers made an impact initially. Starc executed his trademark first-over wicket with the white Kookaburra, while Hazlewood claimed two more wickets. Hazlewood’s dismissal of Rohit Sharma was a testament to bowling brilliance, but the other two wickets were more about batting failures. If Australia had posted a total exceeding 200, or if Mitchell Marsh had held on to a chance off Virat Kohli’s top edge, the outcome might have differed.
However, on a pitch like Chennai’s, the new-ball threat dissipates after a few overs. The game transforms into a scenario where skillful bowlers laboriously toss a chewed-up dog toy onto the pitch, with precision giving way to toil. Meanwhile, sensible batting can inch the score forward with minimal risk. The target gradually diminishes, often culminating in swift, uncontested final blows. India’s bowlers had already done the heavy lifting.
Australia had nothing to counter India’s deployment of three quality spin bowlers, all of whom had previously tormented Australia. These spinners thrived in the challenging conditions, extracting turn, creating uncertainty, and producing deliveries that either stopped on the pitch or hung in the air.
Admittedly, Australia’s squad constraints make it challenging to select a team tailored for slow bowling. The 15-player limit creates significant headaches. Injuries to Travis Head and Marcus Stoinis further compounded the problem. With only 13 fit players to choose from for the tournament opener, the options were limited.
Moreover, there was only one frontline spinner in the squad. When Adam Zampa conceded three boundaries in his first over, the match felt all but decided. Playing under evening dew conditions, Australia’s fast bowlers faced challenges gripping the ball, neutralizing a leg-spinner before he could even begin. Glenn Maxwell’s finger-spin efforts were neat but lacked bite.
Perhaps all of this is part of a broader plan—not to lose, but to accommodate the possibility of loss. The squad of 15 must be selected for the entire tournament, not just the opening match. While the first match featured challenging conditions against a team with a top-tier spin attack, subsequent group stage encounters may favor Australia. Most pitches will likely be flatter, surrounded by small boundaries, where Australia’s fast bowlers could excel.
Australia’s next two fixtures will be at Lucknow, a location known for turning tracks. South Africa possesses Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi, skilled spinners, while Sri Lanka has Maheesh Theekshana and Dunith Wellalage. Australia’s batting must adapt, and the team’s long-term strategy will face scrutiny in the coming week.
In conclusion, Australia’s unconventional start to the World Cup suggests they might be playing the long game, strategically preparing for more favorable conditions in future matches. As they face spin-heavy opponents, the effectiveness of this approach will be closely observed.
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By- Sahiba Suri