Highlights
- England recently defeated Australia in a three match T20I series by 2-0
- Australia are the defending champions
- The World Cup will be played across 7 Australian cities
T20 World Cup 2022: The month of cricketing agony & ecstasy is here. The eighth edition of the T20 World Cup is here and fans and experts all over the globe have fastened their seat belts for what promises to be a joyride till November 13, 2022. The World Cup will feature 45 matches and they will be played across 7 Australian cities. The teams have gathered and are busy preparing themselves for high-octane cricketing action.
In an age-old tradition that the ICC follows every year, all the sixteen captains gathered for captain's day as they shed light on their teams and their preparations for the marquee event. Australian skipper Aaron Finch was pretty candid and he said that his team was tired and they needed to freshen up before the World Cup. The Australian team had a pretty mediocre series against England and it certainly was a reality check for the hosts ahead of the World Cup.
England captain Jos Buttler, on the other hand, disagreed with Finch and said that Australia always start as favourites in any given ICC event and this time it was no different. Buttler also emphasized on the fact that Australia are hosting the World Cup and this gives them an edge as compared to the other contesting teams.
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The English captain further added:
T20 is an unpredictable format and it keeps you on the edge. I go by history and it tells you that the host nations are favourites and have an edge. Many of us have traveled to Australia and know the conditions over here but of course, let's be very honest, nobody knows the conditions better than the Australian team as they have played most of their crickets on these surfaces. They also happen to be the reigning champions, so you have to pick them as absolute favourites of the tournament.
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Australia will play a warm-up game against India and then enter the World Cup at the Super 12 stage on October 22, 2022. They play their opening game against New Zealand, which is a rematch of the last year's T20 World Cup.
