Australia skipper Aaron Finch on Saturday said his side reaching the finals of the Men’s T20 World Cup has not defied expectations and the team from Down Under has the squad to go all the way in the tournament. Australia and New Zealand will square off in the finals of the World Cup on Sunday at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
“Yeah, like you said everyone had written us off but we had a lot of confidence within. We were really confident in the way we were preparing, in terms of our strategy. Yeah, I think it hasn’t defied expectations, we came here with a clear plan to win the tournament and we still feel we have the squad to do that,” said Finch while replying to an ANI query during a pre-match press conference.
When ANI asked whether Pat Cummins goes a bit under the radar in terms of his death bowling skills, Finch said: “Yeah, I think Pat has been amazing right throughout the tournament. He has bowled some crucial overs in the powerplay and in the middle. Like we saw in the last game, the 19th over to go for just three runs was so impressive. Our bowling unit has been impressive all the way through.”
“I think the way Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh have contributed with Marcus Stoinis who has not had much opportunity with the ball, the way they have shared the fifth bowler responsibility has been fantastic. Really pleased with all our bowling attack,” he added.
Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis had played remarkable innings against Pakistan to hand Australia an improbable win against Pakistan in the semi-finals.
“We had a really good off day after the game against Pakistan and an optional training session today which most boys turned up to. Cannot wait for tomorrow. It is one title that has eluded us in the past, the fact we are in the final gives us the best opportunity to rectify that. It will be a great game against New Zealand, they are a great side, looking forward to it,” said Finch.
“I think the spirit amongst the team, we came here, lot of people had written us off in the start. The way we have gone about things has been impressive, everyone has had a match-defining performance at some stage. We are really up and about for tomorrow,” he added.
Talking about the form of Steve Smith, the Australia skipper said: “Not concerned one bit about his form, he is a world-class player. He is someone who in big games has shown how valuable he is. He has been hitting the ball well, no concerns whatsoever.”
Australia and New Zealand have never won the T20 World Cup, and the tournament is guaranteed to have a new winner this time around.
