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Aus mull pace options for World T20 game

Ashton Agar could be dropped for Australia's second World Twenty20 game, with Josh Hazlewood and John Hastings in the mix to tackle Bangladesh.

Josh Hazlewood and John Hastings are in the mix for a call-up for Australia's must-win World Twenty20 clash with Bangladesh.

Needing to trump Bangladesh to keep their title hopes alive, skipper Steve Smith received a pleasant surprise when he turned up to the ground at Bengaluru for pre-match press duties.

The pitch had grass on it and looked a batsman's paradise, with Smith tipping spin won't play a big role in the game that starts at 1am AEDT on Tuesday.

"I don't think so," Smith said.

"The day before it looks pretty similar to what a lot of the IPL wickets look like when we've played here.

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"Generally those games are pretty high-scoring so I think we'll see something like that."

Legspinner Adam Zampa is the frontline tweaker in the 15-man squad and unlikely to be dropped.

But left-arm tweaker Ashton Agar could be squeezed out of the XI, paving the way for Hazlewood or Hastings to return.

"I'm sure he'll be talked about," Smith said of Hazlewood.

"He's obviously got the skills. He hits the seam and if the grass is still there on the wicket he'll certainly come into contention.

"That's the selectors job to pick the side but that's certainly an option. Particularly if the grass stays on the wicket a little bit."

Australia opted against training on Sunday because of a hectic travel day on Saturday, having traversed India and shifted almost 3000kms south.

Smith had no complaints about the long travel and fact his side only had a two-day break after their eight-run loss to New Zealand.

"That's just part of it. You have to put up with whatever you're served with," Smith said.

"For us it's just about going out there and playing with freedom. Not worrying too much about those kinds of things."

Smith also dismissed the suggestion that uncertainty over Australia's XI would help their opposition in the tournament.

"I'm not sure that's an advantage for Bangladesh. We're pretty sure on our combinations and how our players are going to play in these conditions," he said.

"Obviously we didn't adapt well enough in the first game but I think the conditions here are going to be a little bit different.

"We didn't start as well as we would have liked the other day against New Zealand but that's in the past now.

"We know what to expect from Bangladesh and we're ready to go."


3 min read

Published

Source: AAP



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