Trent Bridge mauling reminder for Australia as Windies lie in wait at World Cup
Australia head coach Justin Langer has backed his team to put last year's Trent Bridge nightmare behind them as they prepare to tackle West Indies in Nottingham this week.
England dealt Australia a humiliating defeat on June 19, 2018, when the hosts racked up an ODI record score of 481 for six.
Jonny Bairstow and Alex Hales bludgeoned the tourists' attack for hefty centuries on that occasion, and Andrew Tye's nine overs cost 100 runs as England set the platform for a 242-run trouncing.
Langer did not dodge the question when asked whether he was feeling any sense of post-traumatic stress disorder on the return to the home of Nottinghamshire, for Thursday's Cricket World Cup clash.
"[We have] had some really good times here at Trent Bridge and last year was a down ..." he said.
"I remember we turned up and ... the spirits were pretty high. That was unbelievable.
"I remember walking down to the gate at the end almost wanting to give all the boys a hug because it was brutal. No doubt about that."
Langer said there had been no question of him scolding his team after that match, adding: "The last thing I needed was another smack when I'd been smacked for three and a half hours."
Australia's line-up will be almost unrecognisable from the side that took that beating, and Langer said: "We're better equipped for it."
World Cup hosts England faltered at the same stadium on Monday, when losing to Pakistan in their second group match, and any lingering Australian scars from their last trip to Nottingham will surely heal fully if they can fend off West Indies.
Mesmerising opener Chris Gayle poses the obvious threat in the West Indies ranks, as Langer acknowledged on Tuesday.
"One thing we know about the West Indies, and particularly with Andre Russell and Chris Gayle back in, it's going to be exciting cricket, isn't it?" Langer said.
"When I was a kid it was calypso cricket, and I think we're seeing plenty of signs of calypso cricket. Running and bowling fast."
Gayle can be every bit as destructive, if not more so, than the England batsmen who took Australia to the cleaners 12 months ago.
"He's been a brilliant player for a long time. Dangerous, we all know that," Langer said. "Like he'll have his plans against our bowlers; we'll have our plans against him as well.
"We know he's dangerous. They've got a number of dangerous players. With him on the team they seemed to grow a leg. They take confidence from him. Hopefully they don't take too much confidence on Thursday."
