Follow UsAustralia are 0-2 down in the 2023 ODI World Cup, and that’s the worst start in their World Cups since 1992. Never has an Australian side started with a loss in the first fixture of the competition in the last decade, and after two games, it almost seems like they are out of everyone’s books to head to the semi-final stage of the competition.
But Australian skipper Pat Cummins insisted that the Kangaroos won’t make too many changes to the setup and added that it is tricky to set up an innings in ODI cricket, considering half the game is in daylight and the other in floodlight.
“We'll announce it at the toss tomorrow, but I dare say there won't be too many changes,” Cummins said in the pre-match press conference, ahead of the Sri Lanka encounter.
“Yeah, it's a tricky one you know even ODI cricket compared to T20s played over half the game in daylight, half at night. So, it's a bit different to T20 cricket.”
As a skipper, the all-rounder was quick to recognise the troubles, insisting that these wickets are ‘hard to read’ as well.
“Yeah, find these wickets hard to read as well. Like sometimes they look terrible and they play beautifully and the opposite. Sometimes they look flat and they end up spinning. So, it is tough. You just got to adapt on the fly sometimes,” Cummins added.
Thus far, Australia have played two ODIs - one in Chennai and the other in Lucknow. Now, their third contest of the tournament will be in Lucknow, where they have already played a contest, losing against South Africa.
“Yeah, you still got to assess conditions. You know, India is the big country. So, Chennai is a long way away from say, up north Delhi or somewhere like that. So, there are big differences, but as I said, it's not a perfect art, not a perfect science,” he said.
Cummins also insisted that his side have been ‘off the mark’ and thoroughly have been outplayed by India and South Africa in the two World Cup fixtures.
“Still haven't really quite put my finger on what playing in the Australian way means And I've been playing for a long time - no doubt we haven't been up to the standard that we like to hold. We've been off the mark and been outplayed both games. When we're at our best, we're putting big runs on the board,” he said.
“We're putting the pressure back into the opposition. Us bowlers are taking wickets through the middle. So, we haven't been able to pull any of that together so far. So yeah, we know what makes us a really good team.”