By Justin Chadwick
Australia captain Steve Smith has revealed he was preparing to change up his XI in preparation for a T20-style battle in his team’s washed-out Champions Trophy clash with South Africa in Pakistan.
Tuesday’s match at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium was abandoned without a single ball being bowled due to persistent heavy rain.
Fans look at the big screen showing the message that the ICC Champions Trophy cricket match between Australia and South Africa is abandoned due to rain.Credit: AP
The umpires called off the contest almost four hours after the toss was meant to be held, with the glum forecast convincing them there was no hope of being able to complete the minimum 20 overs per side needed to constitute a match.
Aaron Hardie, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Sean Abbott and Tanveer Sangha were the players left out of Australia’s five-wicket win over England to start the tournament.
If the match against South Africa had gone ahead and was reduced to something closer to 20 overs a side, Smith said he would have made changes to his team.
That could have resulted in power hitters like Fraser-McGurk and Hardie being parachuted in.
Australia’s Steve Smith speaks during a press conference last Friday.Credit: AP
“When we were watching the rain fall, we were probably looking at a different team for a rain-reduced game,” Smith told Prime.
“You’ve got to think on your feet with those things.
“We’ve got a good squad of 15 players, and you’ve got to utilise them as well as you can.”
The sharing of points has thrown group B wide open, with South Africa, Australia, Afghanistan and England all still with a chance of snaring the two semi-final berths on offer.
India and New Zealand have already secured their semi-final spots in Group A, at the expense of Pakistan and Bangladesh.
South Africa currently sit on top of Group B following their 107-run thrashing of Afghanistan.
Australia started their campaign with a thrilling five-wicket win over England, chasing down the victory target of 352 with 15 balls to spare.
Josh Inglis was the hero in that match, crunching an unbeaten 120 off 86 balls after Australia had slipped to 4-136.
Australia face Afghanistan in their final group match on Friday night.
If Australia win, they are guaranteed to go through. But a loss would leave Australia vulnerable, with the England-South Africa clash the day after potentially looming as decisive.
“They’re a dangerous side on their day, like every team in this tournament,” Smith said of Afghanistan.
“Our equation is pretty simple now … if we win, we’re locked into the top four.”
The washed-out match between Australia and South Africa is a boost to England’s hopes.
While they still need to beat Afghanistan on Thursday and South Africa on Saturday, doing so would now secure England’s last four place regardless of net run rate.
Australia’s players had little option but to wait around for hours in the change rooms on Tuesday before their match against South Africa was finally called off.
Smith didn’t hesitate when asked who the most annoying teammate was during that period.
“Marnus (Labuschagne), well and truly,” Smith said with a laugh. “He was wandering around the room, trying to bug every single person.
“Some of us were just trying to sit down and do a crossword, but he would just bug us the entire time.”
AAP
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