In a press conference ahead of the England vs Australia clash in Barbados on June 8 in the T20 World Cup 2024, Australia’s captain Mitchell Marsh updated that pacer Mitchell Starc is fit and going to be available for the highly anticipated clash.
“Starc is all good. Just a bit of cramp from the other night, so as I said, there was no unnecessary risk taken and he's fit,” said Marsh.
Starc had been injured while bowling the fourth over of his spell against Oman on June 5 and was immediately observed by Australian physios. Starc was not able to complete the over and Glenn Maxwell took over.
However, the Australian management later confirmed that Starc’s injury was not of serious concern as it was just a cramp and he would recover soon for the remaining matches of Australia in the T20 World Cup 2024.
The Aussie skipper also revealed why Pat Cummins was rested against Oman and if he will be seen in action when Australia clashes with England.
“Patty (Pat Cummins) will be back in. He has just played a lot of cricket and had a long travel, we wanted to make sure he was Cherry right for this game so, yeah simple as that,” the captain added.
Cummins and Starc have had a stellar IPL with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) respectively.
Cummins was captain of SRH in the latest edition of IPL and he led the team to the finals of the tournament. He took 18 wickets in 16 matches at an average of 31.44.
Starc took his team to the final of the IPL and helped them lift the trophy with his 17 wickets in 14 games at an average of 26.12.
Moreover, the Australian skipper is adamant that the stands of the Kensington Oval are going to be full of English fans. Marsh believes it is going to be a game with a high-voltage atmosphere.
"I daresay this will be full and it'll be mostly English fans, so it'll be like playing at Headingley all over, or anywhere in England where you get sprayed. But the atmosphere, the vibe of the game, there's always a lot riding on it. As a team, we always want to challenge ourselves against the best.”
Marsh also acknowledged England’s hierarchy in the T20 format and called their run exceptional, “England have been exceptional in this format for a long period of time now, so there's certainly going to be a lot on the game and we're pumped."
The last time England and Australia met in a T20 World Cup contest was in the 2022 edition but the match was abandoned due to rain. Before that, they faced each other in the 2021 T20 World Cup and the English won that game.
