Australian skipper Aaron Finch conceded that Australia's hopes of defending their men's T20 World Cup title may already be out of their hands because of the huge margin of the loss to New Zealand and its impact on their net run-rate. "That's a big loss in the context of the tournament," Finch said. "We were just totally outplayed in all three facets. It hurts our net run-rate… but we're still going to be positive. I think we still back ourselves that we can win four, and you need a little bit of luck along the way in such a brutal tournament."
You can't go into a shell in T20 cricket," he said. "You have to be able to transfer pressure back on the opposition as quick as you can, and at times that comes with risk. So you have to be prepared to wear the consequences of taking risks at times. "We haven't got it totally right. We've got to look at ourselves in that regard. But I'm still committed to playing the same way that won us the last World Cup and has given us a bit of a setback here. We've taken the fate out of our own hands I think, to a point. We need to be ultra-positive, ultra-aggressive, and I'm sure that we'll all do that."
Finch also defended Australia's approach while batting, saying that batters can’t afford to die wondering when the required rate is beyond 10. He said that despite the heavy defeat, he wants his team to play the same way that helped them win the World Cup in 2021. "When you are chasing around 10 runs per over, and you get behind the rate by playing three to four dot balls, the required-rate goes up quickly. You can't go into your shell in T20 cricket.
You have to be able to transfer pressure back on the opposition as quickly as you can and at times, that comes with risk and you have to be prepared for the consequences. I am still committed to playing the way the last time we won the World Cup," he added.Australia’s next Super 12 match is against Dasun Shanaka's Sri Lanka on October 25 at the Perth Stadium.
