Mitch Marsh likely to play at No. 3 if Smith fails to recover in time for the T20 World Cup: Justin Langer
Australian head coach Justin Langer will be a happy man as his team managed to defeat the West Indies side in the recently concluded ODI series. Before the ODIs, Australia lost the 5-match T20I series by a 1-4 margin.
There were a couple of bright spots for the Australian team during the West Indies, one of which was the form of all-rounder Mitchell Marsh. His impressive outings led Justin Langer to single him out as a viable option in the No. 3 position at the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup. Marsh could get an opportunity if Steve Smith fails to recover in time from an elbow injury.
The Australian coach was also impressed with Ashton Agar's performance in the third ODI. Speaking to cricket.com.au, Langer said:
"Certainly, Mitch Marsh has put his hand up. The No. 3 position is really interesting, depending on how Steve Smith comes up with his elbow injury. That adds real depth to our side. I also thought the way Ashton Agar played in the last ODI, he's like a leopard in the field, and the way he batted was a real positive for us."
The Big Bash is a great competition to develop our young Australian players: Justin Langer
Justin Langer also opined that Australia is not lagging behind India and England in terms of bench strength. He also stressed that Australia are yet to win a T20 World Cup. Langer believes Australia is progressing well in the shortest format and feels that playing in the Big Bash will help the younger players succeed in the future.
"We've gotten better and better. We have had a couple of tough series with some complications and some challenges. But it was only a few months ago that we were ranked No.1 in the world (in T20Is), and we're very proud of that," said Justin Langer.
"The Big Bash is a great competition to keep developing our young Australian players, that's really important for Australian cricket. I think it's really important that the BBL does that for us as the IPL does for India. That will help us be a very good T20 side when the boys are all available," added Justin Langer.