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Former Australian cricketer Mark Waugh criticized the team management’s decision to drop Mitchell Starc for the Super 8 match against Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup 2024. Waugh called for a restructuring of the coaching setup within the Australian team following their recent tournament in the West Indies and the USA.
Australia had a strong showing in the group stage, going undefeated. Led by Mitchell Marsh, they secured a victory over Bangladesh in their first Super 8 match. However, they suffered a surprising defeat against Afghanistan in their next match, which ultimately prevented them from advancing to the semi-finals.
This marks Australia’s second consecutive early exit from the ICC T20 tournament, having been eliminated in the group stages in the 2022 edition following their T20 World Cup victory in 2021. Notably, Australia had also claimed the ODI World Cup in 2023 and the World Test Championship (WTC) title the previous year.
We Should Do A Lot Better Than That – Mark Waugh
In an interview with Fox Sports’ The Back Page, Mark Waugh expressed discontent with Australia’s selection decisions, particularly advocating for the inclusion of Jake Fraser-McGurk and Josh Inglis in the team. Waugh underscored the importance of reassessing T20 cricket strategies, pointing out the abundance of talent both within and surrounding the Australian squad.
“We need a reboot in T20 cricket. With the amount of talent we’ve got in the squad and around the squad, we should do a lot better than that. We’ve got a lot of good players who didn’t play in that tournament,” Waugh said.
“Jake Fraser-McGurk should have been in the squad, because you just have him there, ready, locked and loaded to go if you need him, but he wasn’t there. The non-selection of Mitchell Starc against Afghanistan was crucial, and even Josh Inglis not getting a game,” he added.
Fraser-McGurk was named as a traveling reserve after being left out of the initial 15-player squad. Meanwhile, Josh Inglis was passed over in favor of Matthew Wade, despite Wade’s underwhelming performance with the bat in the tournament. Wade could only muster 27 runs across four innings, averaging 13.50 with a strike rate of 112.50.
We Need A Reboot By Having A Different Coach – Mark Waugh
Mark Waugh suggested adopting a dual-coaching approach in Australia, akin to England’s setup where Brendon McCullum and Matthew Mott led different formats. Waugh emphasized that such a structure could inject fresh perspectives and facilitate much-needed transformations.
“I reckon we need a reboot by having a different coach for T20 cricket, or 50-over cricket (as well). I think a fresh set of eyes, someone in there to come in and make some change. I think we need to look at some fresh eyes in that T20 outfit,” Waugh continued.
Australian coach Andrew McDonald previously voiced his support for a unified coaching role across all formats. He highlighted that having one head coach enables the selection panel to efficiently handle and prioritize various formats. McDonald argued that centralized leadership enhances the overall management of the team.
