Marcus Stoinis to receive longer rope to develop into a finisher like MS Dhoni: Pat Cummins

Australian vice-captain Pat Cummins stated that all-rounder Marcus Stoinis will receive a longer rope at the number six position to help him evolve into a world-class finisher like MS Dhoni. Cummins said that the middle order was a tough place to bat and it was important for someone of Stoinis' calibre to receive a longer rope.

Marcus Stoinis wasn't able to finish the first T20I between Australia and England off as he scored just 23 runs off 18 balls. Australia suffered a sensational collapse, from 124-2 to 148-6, while chasing 163 runs, and in the end, fell short by 2 runs in a last-ball thriller. But Cummins opined that Stoinis still has the potential to become a world-class finisher.

“You could argue that middle-order role is one of the hardest in any cricket team. That’s what we’ve identified, we’ve got to give guys a go. Someone like MS Dhoni, he was one of the best in the world because he played 300-400 ODI games. You saw during this week’s practice games that we gave a lot of guys a go in that,” Pat Cummins told The Sydney Morning Herald.

“We know it’s not going to happen overnight. That’s been a common theme that selectors and Finchy have spoken about: we’ll identify roles and give them a long run in that. I think we’ve got the right squad, the right players, it’s about getting plenty of games into everyone now,” he further added.

Playing without crowd was strange: Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins found it strange to play after a gap of six months, that too without crowds.

Pat Cummins stated that playing without crowds was a weird experience as there was pin drop silence in the stadium. Although Cummins opined that it did not make any difference to the way Australia played, he definitely found it strange. Cummins especially missed the songs that the English crowds generally sing during the games.

“I don’t think it made any difference to the performance but for sure it was strange. You could hear a pin drop, it’s weird. After a couple of overs, we got into it," Pat Cummins said.

“unless we create the noise in the field, there is absolutely no noise. It's a bit of an adjustment but everyone’s played enough cricket. I don’t think the crowd makes too much of a difference a lot of the time, but it is certainly different here in England, not hearing some of the songs,” he added.

Australia have reached the pinnacle of the T20I rankings on the back of winning four consecutive series. They will have to bounce back quickly in the second T20I to keep that winning streak alive.