Mitchell Marsh, David Warner. Smith, Steven. by Glenn
Maxwell. Starc, Mitchell. Timmy Cummins. Shaun Hazlewood. Eight years ago, they
were a part of Australia’s World Cup team, and they are still a part of
Australia’s World Cup team today. There are more 2015 survivors on this team
than any other in the 2023 World Cup.
In a way, this reflects both how good Australia was in
2015 when they won a World Cup at home with few setbacks and how outstanding
these seven players are. But it’s easy to question if this level of consistency
is really desired, especially given the shaky start to their 2023 campaign.
When does continuity give way to stasis?
There is a noticeable jadedness to Australia’s ODI
setup, no doubt tinted by recent outcomes and the media’s propensity to crave
shiny new things to discuss. Australia keeps playing like they’ve always
played, unlike some other teams, like India, who over the last two World Cup
cycles have repeatedly scrapped their ODI blueprint and started again. They
have a potent lineup supported by a pair of active anchors, and they always
rely on their finest fast bowlers, which usually translates to Test bowlers,
regardless of the conditions.
Although it’s not a bad template per such, this World
Cup has virtually worn it thin. Their middle order’s all-rounders haven’t
produced with the bat, the conditions have reduced the window during which
their fast bowlers are most effective, and they’ve lost a key player who would
have strengthened their top order and given them a spin option for potentially
the entire first half of their campaign.
Some of this is the sort of misfortune that can befall
any squad at the beginning of a competition. However, a portion of it was
predictable when Australia selected its team.
The trouble is, Australia may have predicted it
herself. They are probably conscious that their assault lacks options for spin
and that their lower middle order is made up of players who have either had a
difficult ODI season, are new to the format, or are returning from an injury.
They have supported this group of players and this style of play, but not out
of stubbornness.
That third group, which also contains some hitters and
quick bowlers who have played just occasionally for this Australia team, points
to a more serious issue. Although it is an Australia issue, there are enough
affected teams for it to be considered an overall ODI issue. A number of teams
simply haven’t played enough ODI cricket in the lead-up to this World Cup to be
able to build a proper pool of players.
The fatigue of the all-format player is yet another
type of exhaustion that is present. 11 members of this World Cup team were in
England for the World Test Championship final and the Ashes. Nine members of
this World Cup team were part of Australia’s Test tour of India earlier this
year. The IPL included seven people. Three players were involved in all of the
aforementioned missions, with Warner and Hazlewood having what they could now
consider the good fortune of missing the India trip due to injuries. Cameron
Green, the third person in this group, has only been back at home for about two
weeks since leaving on the aircraft to India on January 31.
The length of this World Cup allows for teams with
slow starts to catch up. Australia are by no means out of contention for
the semi-finals just yet, but no matter how their tournament goes from here,
they’ll be utterly exhausted when it’s done.