Defending champions of the ICC T20 World Cup have announced their 15-man squad for the tournament. The squad that has been selected is very similar to that which lifted the trophy last year in UAE, besides the absence of Mitchell Swepson.
However, the headline-snatching addition in this squad is that of Tim David, the muscular all-rounder who made 14 T20I appearances for Singapore before. He has been on a roll across all the T20 tournaments in the world, and has been knocking on the doors to make it in this Australian side for a while. The player, who last featured in an international game back in March 2020 for Singapore, is likely to make his debut against India.
It will be interesting to see if David can trump the likes of Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell or Marcus Stoinis in the playing XI. However, considering how valuable the above-mentioned players have been in this format, we might witness Steve Smith making way for the 26-year-old.
Skipper Aaron Finch will be keen on contributing a little more with the bat in this tournament and his inconsistent run of form could prove costly at a crucial juncture. However, with Australia themselves hosting the tournament, there is a growing expectation among the crowd that everyone involved will join the party and take them to glory.
Only the West Indies have won this tournament on two occasions (2012 and 2016), but this time, there is a higher probability for them to have company.
Whilst former champions India, England and Pakistan, do stand a good chance, Australia themselves will enter as firm favourites and there is plenty on the line for them as well. They could become the first team to win all the limited overs ICC trophies (World Cup, T20 World Cup and Champions trophy) twice.
In what has been a highly emotional year for the country, who lost three cricketing legends in a very short span, an ICC triumph could prove to be a great revival.
