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Australia came into the T20 World Cup on the back of an incredible title win in last year's tournament in the UAE and put up some consistent performances in the bilateral series that followed. With this year's World Cup on home soil and having their title-winning squad pretty much intact, Aaron Finch's men were the pre-tournament favorites.
But their title defense unraveled in spectacular fashion as they were knocked out in the Super 12 stage of the competition. The Kiwis pretty much sealed the Aussies' fate with a huge 89-run win in the opening game of the Super 12s, while any hopes of a semifinal finish were quashed by the weather in Melbourne.
On paper, a record of three wins out of four completed games doesn't look like a nightmare tournament by any stretch. They were in the tougher of the two groups and even collected more points than Pakistan, who finished as the runner-up. But the manner of performances has left a lot to be desired.
Even in the three matches that they won, they struggled to kill the game early, a very un-Australian trait according to Aussie legend Michael Clarke. Their embarrassing loss against New Zealand meant that they were playing catch-up for the rest of the tournament and needed some big wins to qualify for the semis. Chasing 158 against Sri Lanka, there was no sense of urgency from the Australian batters and only a quick-fire fifty from Marcus Stoinis got them over the line.
They had Ireland on the ropes at 25/5 in a chase of 180 but ended up conceding 137. They failed to dispatch Afghanistan in their last game with Rashid Khan giving them a proper scare and only managed to win by four runs. More than the loss to the Kiwis, the failure to finish these games off early hurt the Australians more.
“I think Australians in general, on the biggest stage under the most amount of pressure, always put it in on the line and have a crack,” Michael Clarke said on Sky SportsRadio.
“We’re not scared to lose. Yet we picked an aggressive 11 in this World Cup squad yet played very defensively. Very un-Australian.”
Part of the blame for the Aussies' lack of intensity can be put down to the packed cricket calendar. Skipper Finch said in October that his players were already tired even before the tournament kicked off. The Australian side has been on the road since the start of the year, which included full tours to Sri Lanka and Pakistan and home series against Zimbabwe, England and New Zealand prior to the T20 World Cup.
"There’s still angst around Justin Langer being sacked": Michael Clarke
Fingers are also beginning to be pointed at the coaching staff and the culture being cultivated by head coach Andrew McDonald, who has the backing of the players and Cricket Australia. McDonald, who unceremoniously replaced Justin Langer earlier this year, has created a relaxed environment in the dressing room, contrary to his predecessor's intensity and micromanagement.
The public outrage caused by Langer's sacking was quietened by a historic series win over Pakistan and a draw against Sri Lanka. But the side's performances in the T20 World Cup have meant that the new regime has once again been put under the microscope.
Langer had a lot of support from the public and former players during his tenure and the way his departure was handled didn't go down well with a lot of sections of the Australian cricket community. It is being argued that part of the reason for the low turnout for the games featuring the home side was the public angst towards the removal of Langer.
“I said it on here a few weeks back — at the moment it feels like there is a real dislike for the Aussie team,” Clarke added. “I want to see that change. We’ve already got messages this morning. So many people are happy that Australia lost.
“There’s still angst around Justin Langer being sacked, or resigning, whatever happened there. There’s still angst around our style of play and how we’re playing.”
The next important thing is the personnel itself. Does the Men in Yellow need a complete reset of their T20 squad? It is hard to put the blame on the squad that won the World Cup just 12 months ago with virtually the same players, but it's clear that this is an ageing side. Finch is 35 and has already retired from ODI cricket, while David Warner and Smith are 36 and 33 respectively. Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, Stoinis and Glenn Maxwell are all above 30.
The average age of the Aussie squad was 31.26, the highest of the tournament. With T20 cricket evolving at a rapid pace, the injection of fresh blood is the need of the hour. With the next T20 World Cup in 2024, there is a decent amount of time for a squad overhaul.
