Tag: australia

England head coach Matthew Mott has reacted to the comments made by Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood recently.

Hazlewood, after Australia’s nine-wicket victory over Namibia, hinted at the possibility of exploiting England’s difficulty in the tournament in the post-match press conference.

England are in a tough situation, pertaining to their qualification to the Super 8s stage of the T20 World Cup 2024 as they are fourth in Group B with just one point in two matches.

“We’ve had some real struggles against them [England] in T20 cricket, so if we can get them out of the tournament, that’s in our best interest as well as probably everyone else’s I think,” stated Hazlewood.

However, the English coach stated that Australians have a mindset to win every game and expressed hope that Hazlewood was just ‘having fun.’

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“I am very much hoping it was an off-hand remark by a really good bloke who is having fun. Having grown up in Australia and the will to win every game, I am sure they will come to the fore,” Matthew Mott said.

“Knowing Josh, he has got a pretty dry sense of humour. I am hoping it was very much tongue in cheek.”

Notably, Australia will face Scotland in their last group-stage fixture which could decide England’s fate in the T20 World Cup 2024 even if they manage to beat Oman and Namibia in their remaining group matches.

Hazlewood’s comments hint at the possibility of Australia winning their match against Scotland with a narrow margin to knock England out of the tournament on net run-rate.

However, if they proceed with this tactic, Australian captain Mitchell Marsh may get banned for two matches ahead of the Super Eight stage, where each team will play three matches.

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Australia captain Mitchell Marsh could face a ban if his team is found guilty of manipulating any margin of victory over Scotland in an attempt to knock England out of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Former champions Australia blew away Namibia by nine wickets as they chased down the modest 72-run target in 5.4 overs to qualify for the Super 8s with one game to spare.

They will face Scotland in their last group-stage fixture which could decide England’s fate in the T20 World Cup 2024 even if they manage to beat Oman and Namibia in their remaining group matches.

Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood hinted at the possibility of exploiting England’s difficulty in the tournament in the post-match press conference.

“In this tournament, you potentially come up against England at some stage again and they’re probably one of the top few teams on their day,” stated Hazlewood.

“We’ve had some real struggles against them in T20 cricket, so if we can get them out of the tournament, that’s in our best interest as well as probably everyone else’s I think.

“It will be interesting to see, never really been in this position before as a team I don’t think.

“Whether we have discussions or not, or we just try and play again the way we played tonight, that will be up to people, not me.”

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Hazlewood’s comments hint at the possibility of Australia winning their match against Scotland with a narrow margin to knock England out of the tournament on net run-rate.

However, if they proceed with this tactic, their skipper may get banned for two matches ahead of the Super Eight stage, where each team will play three matches.

Mitchell Marsh could be charged under Article 2.11 of the ICC’s code of conduct, which is designed to prevent the manipulation of games for “inappropriate strategic or tactical reasons… such as when a team deliberately loses a pool match in an ICC Event in order to affect the standings of other teams in that ICC Event.”

The code of conduct also applies to “the inappropriate manipulation of a net run rate” and the captain would be held responsible, and charged with a Level Two offence.

The captain may face a minimum sanction of a 50% match fee fine, with a maximum of four demerit points and two suspension points, depending on the severity of the offence. Two suspension points would rule Marsh out of Australia’s first two Super Eight matches.

It is worth mentioning that reigning champions England are in a tough situation, pertaining to their qualification to the Super 8s stage of the T20 World Cup as they are fourth in Group B with just one point in two matches.

The defending champions had their campaign opener against Scotland washed out before they succumbed to a 36-run defeat against arch-rivals Australia.

READ: USA hit by first-ever ‘stop-clock’ penalty against India

Australia’s right-arm speedster Josh Hazlewood on Tuesday, stated that eliminating defending champions England from the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 would be “in our best interests as well as probably everyone else”.

Former champions Australia blew away Namibia by nine wickets as they chased down the modest 72-run target in 5.4 overs to qualify for the Super 8s with one game to spare.

Australia will face Scotland in their last group-stage fixture which could decide England’s fate in the T20 World Cup 2024 even if they manage to beat Oman and Namibia in their remaining group matches.

Meanwhile, Josh Hazlewood, who returned brilliant figures of 2/18 in his side’s statement victory over Namibia, hinted at the possibility of exploiting England’s difficulty in the tournament in the post-match press conference.

“In this tournament, you potentially come up against England at some stage again and they’re probably one of the top few teams on their day,” stated Hazlewood.

“We’ve had some real struggles against them in T20 cricket, so if we can get them out of the tournament, that’s in our best interest as well as probably everyone else’s I think.

“It will be interesting to see, never really been in this position before as a team I don’t think.

“Whether we have discussions or not, or we just try and play again the way we played tonight, that will be up to people, not me.”

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Josh Hazlewood was then pressed to reveal what would Australia’s tactics be to knock England out of the tournament.

“Not too sure really. Whether you get close and just knock it around, drag it out.

“There are a few options there, but to take confidence from winning and winning well, I think that’s almost more important than potentially trying to knock someone else out.

“They [England] have still got a lot to do on their behalf as well. So, I think it will become clearer the closer we get to that sort of stuff.”

It is worth mentioning that reigning champions England are in a tough situation, pertaining to their qualification to the Super 8s stage of the T20 World Cup as they are fourth in Group B with just one point in two matches.

The defending champions had their campaign opener against Scotland washed out before they succumbed to a 36-run defeat against arch-rivals Australia.

READ: India avoid USA scare to reach T20 World Cup 2024 Super 8s

ANTIGUA: Australia registered a crushing nine-wicket victory over Namibia to qualify for the Super Eight stage of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 here on Tuesday.

Chasing a modest target of 72, Australia gave a dominant batting performance as they achieved the total in 5.4 overs.

David Warner gave his side a fiery start with an eight-ball 20, which featured three boundaries and one six before David Weise got him out.

However, Travis Head and skipper Mitchell Marsh carried on the momentum, ending the game inside the powerplay.

Head scored 34 off 17 with the help of five boundaries and two sixes, while Marsh scored a nine-ball 18, laced with three boundaries and one six.

Earlier, Australia opted to bowl and wreaked havoc against the Namibian batting line-up with three quick wickets in 4.1 overs with 15 runs on the board.

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The early onslaught prompted Namibia to play cautiously as they scored only six runs in the next 21 balls and lost two wickets in the process.

Namibia’s captain Gerhard Erasmus kept rotating strike amid falling wickets before switching gears during the 29-run stand with Jack Brassell (2).

Erasmus top-scored for his side with a 43-ball 36, which featured four boundaries and one six.

Marcus Stoinis dismissed Erasmus as well as last-man Ben Shikongo to wrap up Namibia’s innings at 72 runs in 17 overs.

For Australia, Zampa topped the bowling charts with the figures of 4-12, while Stoinis and Josh Hazlewood bagged two wickets each.

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ANTIGUA: Australia have won the toss and elected to field first against Namibia in the 24th match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 here on Tuesday.

PLAYING XIs

BRIDGETOWN: Oman’s captain Aqib Ilyas has criticized the batting line-up of Australia ahead of their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 clash, scheduled later today at Kensington Oval.

This will be the first match between the two nations and Ilyas has expressed optimism about his team’s chances against the ODI and Test World champions.

“We don’t have much to lose. Every time there is a World Cup, there is an upset … anything can happen. We respect (Australia) a lot as a team … but before the game, it’s important to not get overawed by them,” the Oman captain told the reporters.

“Once you step into the field, there is no big name, there is no one bigger than you at the field. It’s another game for us and we don’t think that we are going to play someone extraordinary,” he added.

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He then took a dig at Australian batters, saying that they lack good technique and only try to go for big shots.

“(Australia) used to have a few players with good techniques in the past like Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne, but I don’t think they have many now. They look to hit big. They only try to go for sixes. If we get the same wicket (as the one against Namibia), maybe it could be a problem for them,” Ilyas remarked.

For the unversed, Oman lost Namibia in the Super Over after they defended 109 runs in 20 overs to tie the match.

However, David Weise’s all-round performance sealed the Super Over victory for Namibia.

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PORT OF SPAIN: Australia were forced to field coaches and national selector during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 warm-up fixture against Namibia at Queen’s Park Oval Cricket Stadium here on Tuesday.

Australia’s head coach Andrew McDonald, assistant coaches Brad Hodge and Andre Borovec, as well as chairman of selectors George Bailey, featured in the match as substitutes due to a shortage of players.

There were only nine players available for Australia, as Travis Head, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, and Marcus Stoinis had yet to link up with the team after the conclusion of the IPL.

The former T20 World champions invited Namibia to bat first and restricted them to 119-9 in 20 overs, courtesy of brilliant bowling performance by Josh Hazlewood and Adam Zampa.

Hazlewood picked two wickets for five runs, while Zampa returned with figures of 3-25.

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Zane Green was the notable contributor for Namibia with a 30-ball 38, which featured five boundaries.

Australia chased down the total in a dominant fashion in only 10 overs, thanks to David Warner’s aggressive strokeplay. He smashed three sixes and six boundaries on his way to a 21-ball 54.

Tim David scored 23 runs from 16 balls, while Matthew Wade scored an unbeaten 12 off five balls.

For Namibia, Bernard Scholtz picked two wickets.

Australia will next face co-hosts West Indies in their final warm-up match on Thursday at the same venue.

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Former Australia Test opener Joe Burns will represent Italy to help the European nation qualify for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 as a tribute to his late brother Dominic. 

Burns’ brother Dominic passed away in February this year after representing Australia in 23 Tests between 2014 and 2020.

The opening batter was linked with Queensland since 2011 but did not manage to attain a contract for the 2024-25 domestic season in Australia.

“This isn’t just a number and this isn’t just a jersey,” Joe Burns wrote on Instagram while sharing a picture of the Italian jersey with the number 85 on it.

“This is for the people who I know will be looking down proudly from above.

“In February of this year, my brother sadly passed away. 85 was his number in the last team he played (and his birth year) for the mighty Northern Federals in sub-districts.”

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Notably, Joe Burns is already eligible to represent Italy due to his mother’s heritage.

“I often reflect on the bravery and commitment it must have taken my Grandparents when they left Italy to start a new life in Australia,” Burns wrote on Instagram.

“They found a way to make it work through adversity and this has always given me solace through life’s lessons.”

It is worth mentioning here that Italy are yet to qualify for a World Cup in any format.

They narrowly missed out on sealing their spot in the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 as they finished third in the European Qualifiers.

“I’m so proud to represent Italy on our path to the 2026 World Cup,” Burns added.

“The fields of Rome may be a long way from the Gabba, MCG or our front yard growing up, but I feel like I’m coming home.”

The European side will kick start their expedition to book their place in the next edition of the T20 World Cup next month at a sub-regional tournament in Rome.

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Cricket Australia (CA) on Tuesday announced the plan to create dedicated fan zones for the Indian audience at all venues during the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar series later this year.

The five venues in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide will have dedicated seating areas for Indian fans.

The plan to establish fan zones aligns with Cricket Australia’s Multicultural Action Plan, aiming to create an inclusive environment for Indian cricket fans.

CA will soon announce details of ticket sales for the fan zones, encouraging Indian fans to seize the chance to enjoy the high-action series in the vibrant atmosphere.

Fans will be allowed to bring traditional musical instruments such as the Dhol in the fan zones.

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CA took a similar initiative last year during Pakistan’s tour of Australia, setting up a dedicated space for Pakistan cricket fans labelled as the ‘Pakistan Bay’ in Perth Stadium for the first Test match.

‘Pakistan Bay’ consisted of two stands surrounding the Pakistan team’s dressing room. Pakistani tea, halal food, and desi cuisines were also available for Pakistan cricket fans.

The Border-Gavaskar series will kick off on 22 November in Perth, followed by the Day-Night Test in Adelaide on 6 December.

The Gabba in Brisbane will host the third Test, while the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) will host the Boxing Day Test.

The series will conclude in Sydney with the Pink Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG)

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DUBAI: Australia overtook India to claim the number one spot in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Test team Rankings after the annual update on Friday.

The reigning World champions reached the summit of the ICC Test rankings, owing to their 209-run victory over India in the World Test Championship final at The Oval last year.

Australia are four points ahead of India (120) and 19 points clear of third-placed England (105) after the annual rankings update.

There were no other changes in the rankings as South Africa (103), New Zealand (96), Pakistan (89), Sri Lanka (83), West Indies (82) and Bangladesh (53) remained unchanged in positions between fourth and ninth.

“The rankings update only takes into consideration teams’ performances after May 2021, with India’s impressive 2-1 series triumph over Australia under skipper Virat Kohli that finished in January of 2021 dropping out of the rankings period,” the ICC said in a press release.

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“All results between May 2021 and May 2023 are then weighted at 50 percent and the ones in the following 12 months – that includes Australia’s World Test Championship final victory – then weighted at 100 percent.”

Meanwhile, India continued their dominance in white-ball rankings as they remained at the top in ODI and T20I rankings.

The Indian cricket team has increased their lead over the second-ranked Australian team by six points in the ICC ODI team rankings.

India is on top with 122 points, followed by Australia (116) and South Africa (112).

In the ICC T20I Rankings Australia (257) has reduced the gap to seven points with India (264). Meanwhile, England are placed at third spot with 252 points.

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