Australia did what they does best – Came out as champions

In the history of Men's international cricket if there's one country which has consistently proved that they have a big match temperament its Australia becoming the T20 world cup champions 2021.

A quick look at the world titles the Aussies have won in the One Day format shows just how dominant they have been in world cricket and how they have consistently shown that they can peak at just the right time, regardless of immediate form, pressure, expectations, criticism etc.

As many as five ODI Men's World Cup titles won (the most by any country) from 1987 to 2015. Over the decades, the Aussies have produced quality match winners.

And now they have won the title that had eluded them since the inaugural edition of the tournament in 2007 - The ICC Men's T20 World Cup. But one factor that also needs to be kept in mind is the toss factor. The UAE as a venue heavily favoured the teams winning the toss and fielding first. It's important to remember that Australia captain Aaron Finch won six of the 7 tosses he was a part of in the tournament.

Going into this edition of the tournament, Australia were not among the immediate title favourites. They had been humiliated by Bangladesh in a T20I bilateral series on a tour in which they were arguably the favourites. A 4-1 win by Bangladesh in the 5 match series in August this year wasn't just a shock series loss; it also placed a huge question mark on their ability to go too far in the T20 World Cup.

Warner was in such bad form that he was dropped by the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL, before being removed as captain. Coach Justin Langer and his coaching style was increasingly being put under the scanner.

And then Australia did what Australia does best. They began to peak at just the right time. And they were helped all through by Aaron Finch's incredible luck at the coin toss.

In the semi-final Australia met Pakistan - the only undefeated side in the tournament in the Super 12 stage - and beat them by 5 wickets to enter the final.

Once England was eliminated by New Zealand in the other semi-final and the summit clash became a Trans-Tasman clash between Australia and New Zealand, the Aussies were immediately the big favourites.

Matthew Wade won them the semi-final vs. Pakistan with his batting heroics coupled with some luck (41* off 17 balls).

Adam Zampa was exceptional in the tournament, taking 13 wickets in 7 matches and finishing as the second highest wicket taker overall.

Tried and trusted war horse, Josh Hazlewood was the second Aussie bowler on the list of most wicket takers in the tournament with 11 wickets in 7 games.

And then there was David Warner. They said he was done, they said he wouldn't make much of an impact. And he finished as the second highest run getter in the tournament with 289 runs in 7 innings, at an average of 48.16 and a strike rate of almost 147, with three fifties.

Australia came together and played like one very tightly knit unit, they played like they had a point to prove and they came together to show that you can never write them off as T20 world cup champions 2021, especially when the stars align for them.

Report this Page