In the absence of injured Aaron Finch, Australia chose wicketkeeper-batsman Matthew Wade captain for the five-match Twenty20 series against Bangladesh on Monday.
Finch worsened a knee injury in the lead-up to Australia’s 4-1 loss in the recent T20 series in the West Indies, and he did not travel to Bangladesh. When Finch was injured in December, Wade took over as Australia’s captain. He’s also led Victoria, Tasmania, and the Hobart Hurricanes as a captain.
He expressed optimism after Australia returned from a T20 thrashing to win the one-day international series 2-1 against the West Indies.
“We haven’t shifted our focus too much; coming from a background where we didn’t play much cricket, it took us a few games to get going against the West Indies. Over here, I’m anticipating positive outcomes “On Monday, Wade told reporters.
“We have good leaders and experienced bowlers in the group, so my leadership will definitely be more visible with our batting group.”
Wade will captain a team that will be without Steve Smith, David Warner, and Glenn Maxwell.
Riley Meredith, Australia’s fast bowler, has been ruled out of the series after suffering a side injury on Monday. Nathan Ellis, a young Tasmanian paceman, has been added to the squad.
Ben McDermott, on the other hand, has recovered from an ankle injury sustained when he collided with sideline advertising boards in Barbados.
Starting Tuesday, Australia will play Bangladesh in five Twenty20 matches behind closed doors at Dhaka’s Sher-e-Bangla national stadium. Till now Bangladesh has never beaten Australia in a T20 match.
