Andrew McDonald (Australia Coach) ensured that no matter how slowly Mitchell Marsh progresses, the all-rounder will be all good to be playing in the upcoming T20 World Cup in the US. Mitchell Marsh is someone who can hit monster sixes and is often termed to be the bowler with the golden arm as he has a lot of variations.
While playing for the Delhi Capitals (DC), Mitchell Marsh received a right hamstring injury due to which he had to return from the Indian Premier League (IPL) early to recover from his injury ahead of the marquee event. Leaving aside Marsh, players from Australia’s squad who have not participated in the IPL assembled together for a training camp before moving to the Caribbean on May 25th.
Mitchell Marsh is progressing well- Andrew McDonald
Andrew McDonald was having an interaction with reporters and gave a huge update on skipper Mitchell Marsh. Andrew McDonald made it very much clear that Australia have quite a bit time before the T20 WC 2024 to get ready.
“He’s (Marsh) progressing well. Probably a little slower than expected. But we’ve got plenty of time now that he has been ruled out of the IPL. (Our) first game is just short of a month away now. So ample time for him to get ready,” McDonald said to the reporters.
“You probably won’t see him bowl in the couple of weeks here. It’ll probably happen the week before we leave. And then he’ll be able to ramp that up when we’re over there. We’ll be able to cherry-pick the moments during the tournament where he’ll be useful with the ball, (and) we’ve got some all-round depth in the squad, which gives us good coverage anyway,” he added.
There is no real concern about Mitchell Marsh’s match fitness- Andrew McDonald
McDonald mentioned that there is no need to be concerned about Marsh’s progress because Australia will be playing practice matches prior to the main event.
“No real concern about match fitness. We’ve got a couple of practice games when we get to Trinidad in the support period. So he’ll likely to get plenty of match opportunities. And if not, we’ll be able to stimulate those through practice, which our coaching stuff are pretty good at. By the first game against Oman, we’re confident he’ll be up and running,” McDonald stated.
McDonald was asked about the young batting sensation Jake Frazer-McGurk’s exclusion from the Yellow squad and also the fact that there will be only one player under the age of 28 will be seen in Cameron Green, to which he replied: “There’s been a discussion around the age profile of our team in all formats.”
“I’am a big believer in you don’t know when the end is going to be. And a lot of people write off those players just based on their age. We feel as though in the last 12 months in particular in the white-ball space we’ve given plenty of opportunities to other players,” he said.
“Have we gone back to the tried and tested in terms of World Cups and the performers that we know can perform on that stage? There’s no doubt about that. It’s players that have been there before and done it and are still in good form. And you look at David Warner is the last 15 games for Australia, his record is outstanding,” he stated.
“Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, those player that are probably the elder statesman of the team are still performing at international level. And that goes a long way,” he added.
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