Australia are peaking at the right time for a crack at their fifth World Cup triumph and will go into the tournament at home not only as the top-ranked nation, but also as the overwhelming favourites.
Under the attacking coaching of Darren Lehmann, the Australians have registered some impressive results and have only lost one of their last 12 completed ODIs.
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Australia accounted for the third-ranked South Africans 4-1 in a series at home last November and won the tri-series at home with wins over England and India.
Lehmann and fellow selectors have assembled a strong playing group around a core of key players – David Warner, Steve Smith and Mitchell Johnson.
Australia’s biggest challenge will be how the team handles the pressures of being the host nation. They didn’t cope in 1992 when they last hosted the sport’s showpiece and they missed out on the semifinals. The only team to have won a World Cup at home are India in 2011.
The home team have traditional rivals England first up on February 14 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is also the venue for the March 29 final.
The Australians also have Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Bangladesh and associate teams Afghanistan and Scotland in their pool and will have home advantage for all but their pool game with the Black Caps, which is in Auckland on February 28.
Much will depend on Australia’s ability to get quick runs at the top of the innings and they have just the right opening combination in the form of Aaron Finch and Warner.
Warner has three ODI centuries, including a 127 off 115 balls against England in the recent tri-series, but his form with the bat can be gauged by the fact that he also scored three Test centuries in the recent series against India. Finch has five tons, with four of them last year.
And it doesn’t stop there. There is a relentless array of batsmen who can not only stay on the wicket, but also smash the ball to all parts of the ground. There is Smith, who seems to have flourished since taking over the responsibility of captaincy, the experienced Shane Watson, possibly George Bailey depending on Michael Clarke’s availability, and explosive allrounders Glenn Maxwell, James Faulkner and Mitchell Marsh. Mitchell Johnson, the ICC Cricketer of 2014, leads the attack with fellow left-armer Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins offering pace and venom. There is some concern over the selection of Xavier Doherty as the specialist spinner, but it is evident that the Australian selectors are clear in their mind that pace will have more impact in this World Cup.
The Australians play aggressive cricket and Warner has already been told to “stop looking for trouble” after his recent conflicts. But it’s like water off a duck’s back for coach Lehmann, who said: “David’s an aggressive character and we support that. It’s just making sure he does the right thing on the ground. We’ll work with him with that.”
KEY PLAYER – DAVID WARNER
Aggression is the key to everything he does. The 28-year-old southpaw is easily one of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket, and he can sieze the initiative very early for Australia with his calculated mayhem. The only worry with Warner is that he gets himself into trouble with his behaviour. That’s something that can play into opposition’s hands.
STRENGTHS
The hosts have a terrific fast bowling attack and know how to exploit the conditions at home, but their strength lies in an incredible batting line-up that can chase down any total, or rebuild from any disaster.
In Aaron Finch, David Warner, Shane Watson, Steven Smith and Glenn Maxwell, they have the most destructive top-order in the world right now.
In Watson and Mitch Marsh, and also Maxwell with his off-spinners, they have some fantastic all-rounders, which is always an advantage in ODIs.
Having won the World Cup four times already, they know how to get the job done.
WEAKNESSES
There seems to be very few weaknesses in the team at the moment, but one of them was the selectors showing emotions and picking up an injured Michael Clarke. That’s a move which can backfire on them.
The second one is obvious. Playing at home comes with its own pressure of expectation, and there is only one team that has coped with it as a host so far in the history of the tournament – India in 2011.
A quality spinner is surely lacking from the side, and Xavier Doherty’s left-arm bowling will be severely tested.
Australia will also have to guard against the tendency of their bowlers to leak too many runs on off days.
VERDICT
The favourites. They know the conditions well and possess the right mix of power-hitters and fast bowlers to pull them out of tough situations. The recent tri-series triumph has given the Aussies an additional boost to succeed at home.
