NEWS
Follow UsIn what comes as a huge, timely boost for Australia, skipper Mitchell Marsh has confirmed that he is fully fit again, and will be available to bowl in the Super 8s for the Kangaroos.
Seam bowling all-rounder by designation, Marsh has played as a specialist batter in this T20 World Cup so far due to a hamstring injury he suffered during the second half of the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Due to his injury history, Australia have taken no chances with Marsh and have treaded with utmost caution.
But on the eve of his side’s first Super 8s clash against Bangladesh, Marsh confirmed that he is ‘ready’ to contribute with the ball.
“I'll be available to bowl, yeah. With the line-up that we've got, I don't really necessarily see a need for me to bowl, but I think it's really important in this format to have options and we're blessed with plenty of those,” Marsh said ahead of the Bangladesh clash.
“Actually physically feel good. It’s always nice to have a bit of break from bowling and I often joke about that, but yeah - Stoin and I often talk about it as all-rounders, we love being in the game.
“And as I said before, it's really important in this format with some of the teams that are coming up against us to have as many options as we possibly can.”
Despite not bowling, Marsh has pretty much still been an all-rounder in this T20WC, in the sense that he’s juggled two things: batting and captaincy duties. At the international level, the 32-year-old is still a relatively inexperienced captain, but he asserted that he’s thoroughly enjoyed leading the side so far.
“Oh, look I've thoroughly enjoyed it,” Marsh said of captaincy.
“As I've said multiple times, I feel very lucky with the group that we've got, the amount of experience we've got within our team and also our staff. We've got an incredible group of staff that help us prepare as best we can and that certainly makes my job a lot easier.”
Australia have a 100% record in this T20WC so far, but were sloppy in the field in their previous encounter against Scotland. Uncharacteristically enough, they spilled as many as three chances, with Marsh himself being the culprit on two occasions.
The skipper admitted that, going forward, his side will have to ensure that there are no such lapses in the field.
“I mean, yeah, it was obviously not our best effort in the field [against Scotland]. I think I dropped three of the catches, so I take the brunt of that.
“But I think the thing we speak about is that we've got a lot of trust in our group. We had an off night in the field and this group loves to stand up in big moments and they all start now - so I've got a lot of trust in the group.”
On June 20 (Thursday), Australia will be up against a team they’ve never lost to in T20WC history, but are playing some really good cricket in this competition so far, having won three in four. Marsh was full of praise for his opponents ahead of the big clash.
“Well, they've got a lot of experience, a few young guys and they are a good team. There is a reason they have made the Super 8s,” Marsh said of Bangladesh.
“They're obviously playing some good cricket and we know in these conditions that Bangladesh are a strong team. So, we've got a lot of respect for them and hopefully we can bring our A game.”
And, If you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out — big time. Play Fantasy on Cricket.com NOW! Download the App here.
