Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting said the Indian Premier League (IPL) will be an ideal preparation for the out of form Australia cricketers before the ICC T20 World Cup.
Batting mainstays Steve Smith and David Warner as well as pace spearhead Pat Cummins are among several first-choice players who skipped the recent tours of West Indies and Bangladesh.
Australia’s Twenty20 squad suffered identical 4-1 defeats on both tours, the low point being bundled out for 62, their lowest score in this format, by Bangladesh.
“It just goes to show the depth around Australian cricket right now is not where it needs to be. There’s work to do there,” Ponting said on SEN radio.
“The T20 World Cup is not far away (but) with everyone fit and healthy in the UAE, I still think the Australian team can push really hard to win that title that’s eluded us.”
IPL will host its remaining 31 games between September 19 and October 15 just before the T20 World Cup which starts from October 17.
Skipper Aaron Finch, who underwent a knee surgery on Thursday, is expected to lead the side in the tournament scheduled in October-November.
Most of the Australians also play in the IPL, which has now been rescheduled to take place in the UAE and this will serve as ideal preparation for the returning players, Ponting said.
“Those guys that haven’t played for three or four months now, they need to get back into the groove of playing high-quality cricket against the best players in the world,” said Ponting, who coaches Delhi Capitals in the IPL.
Riley Meredith, Dan Christian, Moises Henriques, Mitchell Marsh, Adam Zampa, Andrew Tye and Josh Philippe were all part of the side that toured the Caribbean and Bangladesh, and all hold IPL deals.
Marsh and Philippe had opted out of the first stage of the IPL tournament that was held in India.
Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn and Ben Cutting – none of whom are in Australia’s plans or hold state contracts – are the other Australians with IPL contracts.
