Additional information has emerged regarding the injury of Australian captain Mitchell Marsh. Former Gujarat Titans keeper Matthew Wade has been found guilty of causing inconvenience to the captain, following the Australian assistant coach’s throw, which has led to Steve Smith being sent to Sri Lanka as a possible backup for the World Cup.
Australia’s entry into the T20 World Cup has gone through a very poor phase in the shortest format of the game. The Australian team has been struggling with a number of injuries and has lost almost all of its in-form and key players. They lost the series against Pakistan, and all-rounders Marcus Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell were not part of all the games, nor were opening batsmen Head and Marsh. Opening middle-order batsman Tim David has been sidelined since the BBL due to injury.
Australia were looking to shore up their pace deck after two of their most experienced fast bowlers, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, were ruled out of the World Cup. Meanwhile, Nathan Ellis and Xavier Bartlett began to take control of the Australian attack; However, they have been dealt a new blow with their captain being out for an indefinite period.
“It wasn’t talked about much,” Nathan Ellis said of his injured captain.
According to the latest reports, Mitchell Marsh suffered testicular bleeding, which was revealed by scans after a Wenger throwdown hit the Australian captain’s box. Smith has been called up to join the Twenty20 World Cup squad in Colombo ahead of the clash against Sri Lanka.
Mitchell Marsh has not been ruled out of the entire tournament, and once he returns, he is likely to be a part of the tournament in the latter stages. Smith then boarded a flight from Adelaide and confirmed on Thursday that he would be available for Australia’s game against Sri Lanka.
Ellis said of Mitchell Marsh, “We probably had an idea of it yesterday and it happened today, so when you lose a captain it’s never a good scenario for the team, but also for the guy who goes to sleep last night thinking they’re not playing and then he’s got to come in.”
However, the speedster confirmed that he possibly has the most comfortable group in the world; Therefore, Travis Head soon took over as stand-in captain and never looked under any kind of pressure during the match against Ireland. However, he also said that the Australian team missed Mitchell Marsh, but it is not a much discussed matter.
Ellis continued, “So yeah, thankfully, obviously, we all want Mitchie there, and we love Mitchie leading us. But yeah, it wasn’t talked about too much, and we just tried to hit the ground running.”
Can Steve Smith be included even if Mitchell Marsh is retained in the World Cup squad?
Currently, Steve Smith has been included in the team in place of Mitchell Marsh. However, if Australia want to keep Marsh’s chances of a comeback alive, they could add the experienced Australian cricketer as a replacement for Josh Hazlewood.
Sean Abbott was called up as a replacement for Josh Hazlewood, but has not been included in the squad as of now. If the Australian management is positive on their pace deck without Abbott, they can improve their batting depth by including Steve Smith.
Tim David is in the final stages of recovery from a hamstring injury and Matt Renshaw looked very reluctant to play the shots due to Australia’s lack of batting depth. The 5th wicket will expose young Cooper Connolly and the bowlers to the opposition bowling attack.
“Obviously there’s a lot of noise about Steve Smith scoring runs in the BBL. But our top order is world class” – Nathan Ellis
Steve Smith has been called to Sri Lanka on the basis of his excellent performance in the Big Bash League in the last few seasons. However, Australian fast bowler Nathan Ellis believes that even though he is a superstar cricketer, the top order that has been finalized over the last 18 months is of the highest quality for Australia.
The Australian top order includes Travis Head and captain Mitchell Marsh, who form an explosive opening pair for them and then they are supported by big-hitting all-rounder Cameron Green, who has taken up the number one spot. 3 roles with some grace.
Ellis said of Smith, “We haven’t actually played a game with him for Australia in a long time. He’s obviously a gun. He’s one of the best players in the world.”
He said, “But yes, friends, it has taken us 18 months and about 20 T20 matches to get here, where we have a top order that has completely engaged its mind. There is obviously a lot of noise about Steve Smith scoring runs in the BBL. But our top order is world class.”
Also read: Dasun Shanaka equals Rohit Sharma’s World Cup record by scoring 19 runs in 19 balls against Oman
