Australian captain Mitchell Marsh won't be able to bowl and will focus solely on batting in their opening T20 World Cup 2024 match against Oman on June 6. He's still recovering from a hamstring injury sustained during the IPL. Marsh participated in both warm-up games against Namibia and West Indies but with limited bowling and even had to relinquish captaincy duties in the field.
Mitchell Marsh to not bowl in Australia's T20 World Cup opener
“For Mitch, (the warm-up games) was about ticking off where his body was at,” McDonald told cricket.com.au.
“He fielded more overs tonight (in the warm-up against West Indies), he was able to move more freely, so he’s building a little bit of confidence there. It looks as though he’s all set for the first game,” he added.
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Mitchell Marsh's participation in the IPL was cut short. He played only four matches for the Delhi Capitals before a hamstring injury forced him to return to Australia in late April for rehab.
“The second part is just when the bowling comes back online... it won’t be the first game,” McDonald added.
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Australia's struggles continued in their second warm-up match against the West Indies. Playing with a depleted squad, they fell short by 35 runs. Key players like Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Cameron Green and Travis Head were missing from the action. These players are yet to join the squad, leaving a significant hole in the Australian line-up. The reason for the limited squad? Australian players who participated in the IPL were given leave to be with their families and skipped the warm-up matches.
Australia's T20 World Cup squad
Mitchell Marsh (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Travelling Reserves: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Matt Short
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