Australia eyes fitting finale as end of an era looms for ODI stars
IN a moment that won’t get the recognition it deserves, Tuesday’s ODI at the MCG may be the last time a stack of Australian stars will play a one-day international on home soil.
Next year’s World Cup in India shapes as the end of an era for this Australian team, given the schedule makes it unrealistic for many senior players to continue in 50-over cricket.
While firm decisions are yet to be made, it’s possible Tuesday’s dead-rubber against England could be the last ODI outing in Australia for David Warner, Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Marcus Stoinis.
For Warner, Starc, Smith, Cummins and Hazlewood it would be a fitting venue for their finale, given it’s where they lifted the World Cup trophy back in 2015.
Perhaps selectors will hope that a couple of those stars will forge on a little longer than the World Cup in 12 months’ time to help with a smoother transition, but unless a player is planning on battling through to the 2027 World Cup in South Africa, then it seems an opportune time for a new era.
Australia won’t play another ODI on home soil until January 2024, against the West Indies, and a handful of stars have already indicated a scaling back of playing all three formats.
“I don’t think playing three formats is something I can do for a long period of time moving forward now,” Starc said over the weekend. “Not the way it’s scheduled these days. It’s certainly impossible at the moment to play every game as a three-format player.
“Tests always first (priority). Tests are far above white ball. I’ll decide on the rest as I go and where my body’s at and how I feel about it. I’d love to, selection and form pending, very much like to continue playing Test cricket as long as we can.”
Warner said last week on Triple M that while he is shooting for the 2024 Twenty20 World Cup, this could be his final 12 months in Tests.
“Test cricket will probably be the first one to fall off,” he said on Triple M’s Deadset Legends. “Because that’s how it will pan out. The T20 World Cup is in 2024, (one-day) World Cup next year.
“Potentially it could be my last 12 months in Test cricket.
“But I love the white-ball game. It’s amazing.”
Smith was half joking when he suggested back in September
he might not play one-day cricket that much longer – but he would be 38 by the time a 2027 World Cup came around.
“I’m getting old myself, so I’m probably the next one to retire,” he said this year. “So we’ll see.”
There is a feeling that Cummins may only captain the one-day team as a one-year mission through to next year’s World Cup.
He is younger than his fellow quicks at 29 and so could play on in 50-over cricket, but the reality is the demands of the schedule force him to rest from ODI cricket so often that it may not be sustainable for him to continue in the format, given captaining and performing in Tests is his priority.