Favourites Australia out to gatecrash another Indian party

Let's be honest. Save the hardcore cricket fans, not many in Australia are completely aware of this T20 World Cup taking place. The onus is on Mitchell Marsh and his team to light up the tournament to capture the attention of Australian sports fans.

It's the time differences for most of Australia's matches, with a number starting post-midnight on the eastern seaboard. And it's also the general lack of connection for a lot of Aussies with their white-ball teams in the modern era. All that will change if Australia can go deep. For, nothing gets Australians cheering like the potential of a World Cup win.

The squad, and what it tells us

Mitchell Marsh (captain), Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Cameron Green, Tim David, Josh Inglis (wk), Cooper Connolly, Nathan Ellis, Xavier Bartlett, Adam Zampa, Matt Renshaw, Ben Dwarshius, Josh Hazlewood, Matthew Kuhnemann

The discussion around the Australian squad has been more around the ones missing out rather than those picked. Steve Smith is the glaring omission despite his recent form in T20 cricket. Pat Cummins's late withdrawal due to injury and uncertainty around Josh Hazlewood's participation adds a layer of uncertainty. While the batting is power-packed on paper, the bowling doesn't carry the usual menace of Australian World Cup attacks.

The road to the World Cup

Last five T20Is: L-NR-L-L-L

It's been an unconvincing run into the World Cup, having just been clean-swept by Pakistan in Pakistan, on the back of losing a series to India in Australia. However, Australia had been on a dominant run before their home summer, winning 16 out of 20 T20Is since the last World Cup.

After poor returns in the last two T20 World Cups, there has been a significant change in Australia's approach, especially with the bat. They've adopted an ultra-aggressive strategy from the start, boasting power-hitters like Marsh, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, and Tim David.

This can mean an overreliance on their batting, especially with Mitchell Starc's retirement. They are a team who will back themselves to chase any target but could be vulnerable when defending. Only one of their 10 wins in 2025 came after batting first.

Who can bend a match in 10 balls

In a team brimming with boundary hitters, Tim David stands out. He has a reputation for needing less than 10 balls to turn matches. His newfound consistency in 2025—averaging 49.37 with a strike rate of 197.5 across 14 T20Is—has taken him to a new stratosphere.

Australia have a clear schedule, playing all their opening round matches in Sri Lanka before shifting to India (Mumbai, Chennai, Delhi). Coming off slower surfaces in Sri Lanka, their batters could be well-placed to peak on the better batting pitches in India.

Australia don't often lose to lesser-fancied teams in World Cups and should handle Ireland and Oman. However, co-hosts Sri Lanka and ever-improving Zimbabwe could potentially trip them up early.

What a good World Cup looks like

Nothing short of a win to seal Australia's second T20 World Cup triumph would suffice. It's the only trophy missing in the cabinet for the Andrew McDonald era. This is also likely the last chance for players like Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis to add more silverware to their resumes.