(AP Photo)
In a surprising revelation during the T20 World Cup 2024, seasoned Australian pace bowler Josh Hazlewood asserted a significant statement regarding the fate of the England national cricket squad. Hazlewood emphasized that the Australian team holds a crucial advantage in thwarting England’s aspirations of progressing to the Super 8 stage.
The English side’s path to the Super 8 stage of the ICC tournament has become uncertain following a disappointing draw against Scotland and a defeat against the formidable Australian team. With Jos Buttler at the helm, England’s fate hinges on triumphs in their upcoming encounters against Oman and Namibia.
Currently positioned fourth in “Group B,” England has amassed a mere point with a nett run rate (NRR) of -1.800. Even with a maximum of four points, they risk being level with Scotland. To secure advancement to the Super 8 stage, England must clinch a superior nett run rate compared to Scotland, irrespective of the outcome of the Scots’ match against the Australians.
In a post-match interview following the victory against Namibia, Josh Hazlewood underscored the potential advantage that could be garnered by rival teams in the event of the defending champions’ elimination. He accentuated the strategic significance of sidelining England from the tournament, especially given their formidable track record in T20 cricket matchups against Australia.
“In this tournament, you potentially come up against England at some stage again and they’re probably one of the top few teams on their day. We’ve had some real struggles against them in T20 cricket. So if we can get them out of the tournament, that’s in our best interest as well as probably everyone else. It will be interesting to see,” Hazlewood said.
“Never really been in this position before as a team I don’t think. Whether we have a discussion or not and we just try and play it again like we did tonight – that’ll be up to other people, not me,” he added.
Australia cruised to a convincing nine-wicket triumph against Namibia at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Tuesday, June 11 (local time), marking their seamless progression to the Super 8s of the T20 World Cup 2024 from Group B.
Executing a flawless display across all facets of the game, Australia’s dominance was evident as they restricted Namibia to a mere 72 runs in 17 overs after winning the toss. Leg-spinner Adam Zampa emerged as the standout performer for Australia, claiming three crucial wickets while conceding just 12 runs in his four overs. Additionally, Josh Hazlewood and Marcus Stoinis chipped in with two wickets each during the recent World Cup fixture.
Under the leadership of Mitchell Marsh, Australia now sets its sights on the upcoming showdown against Scotland in their final Group B encounter in St Lucia, scheduled for Saturday. The outcome of this fixture will hold significant implications for the defending champions, England, as their tournament fate hangs in the balance.
