THE POWER.. THEN THE GLORY
The fight for places at the top of the order can push England and Aussies to greatness
ENGLAND and Australia believe the battles to play in their top order can drive them to T20 World Cup glory next year.
As the two sides met at Southampton last night, it felt as if it was the start of a year-long countdown to the finals in India.
And as the No.1 and No.2 ranked sides, they have strength in depth in the area that matters most in this era of big- hitting and bigger scores.
The first six powerplay overs can make or break a T20 innings and both sides reckon they have the top- order prowess to dominate from the off.
England are starting the series with Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler in the driving seat, with Dawid Malan at first drop.
But with World Cup winner Jason Roy missing, Test captain Joe Root ( right) not selected and Tom Banton forced down the order, the competition to fill the top- three positions is as tight as it comes – and that is without even considering the merits of Alex Hales.
Bairstow said: “There are always going to be peopl people pushing hard for places in the team and there are going to be more and more players coming through.
“That is what keeps the standard high and drives you on to maintain and improve on what you’ve done before.
“There are guys who are missing from this side at the moment for different reasons and when they come back it will only help lift the intensity and the performance level in the squad.
“Getting the side off to a good start when you’re chasing around 200 is really important. It sets the platform.”
In the Aussie dressing room it is powerful all- rounder Marcus Stoinis who has been forced down the order as he watches skipper Aaron Finch, David Warner and Steve Smith fill their boots up top.
Opening the innings, Stoinis was the run-away top scorer in last season’s Big Bash as he helped Melbourne Stars reach the final, but he still cannot break into the first-choice top three for the Baggy Greens.
“Marcus certainly won’t displace Warner and Finch at the moment,” said coach Justin Langer. “They are the best combination in the world, I would say, in T20 and one- day cricket.
“When you’ve got Steve Smith, who is the world’s best batsman, and the best opening combination it is hard to break into that.
“But that’s great for us. We have based our success in Australian cricket on hardcore competition for places, and I get the sense we are starting to build on that.
“That’s a positive, not a negative.”