Short blasts 41 off 26 in a match-winning opening stand against Head, with the goal of clinching a permanent starting place ahead of Fraser-McGurk.
" All yours now champion". Following his T20I pension in June, David Warner and Jake Fraser-McGurk shared a beverage on their Instagram photo.
Warner and the majority of Australia assumed Fraser-McGurk would be their natural replacement at the top of the order in Australia's T20I area and perhaps the ODI team.
But Australia's selectors are n't so sure at the moment, and Matthew Short is intent on making his case to be the permanent partner to Travis Head after making 41 off 26 in a blistering match-winning 86-run stand off 36 balls to take the opening T20I away from England's reach before the end of the first powerplay in Southampton.
While Fraser-McGurk's rapid celebrity has shot from the fringes of local cricket into the stratosphere in less than 12 months thanks to a mind-blowing IPL, Short has been the country's most regular all-format batter at American regional level in the past two years and the most powerful opener in the BBL over the past two tournaments, winning back-to-back tournament MVP awards.
Short was doubtful if he would get the chance to start after missing the Scotland set due to the beginning of his first child. After being shuffled around in his previous eight T20I pitches, he is determined to take his chance at the top of the purchase.
" I just found out next day", Short said following Australia's 28-run succeed. " Certainly, with Davey Warner away, you kind of know that the line's opened up. But next Jake Fraser-McGurk has been playing the last few sports in Scotland, so you never know where you sit. But I'm happy I sort of took that opportunity afternoon and played my part to support the team with a gain tonight.
" It's a specific sort of goal of me. I've been in and out of the area just over the last 12-18 times. I'm really trying to take advantage of Dave's absence and make a claim on this area.
The opening areas in Australia's T20I are the most desired and the most economical. There are many people in Australia who are capable of success. Where the pickers would like to create depth is in the thick order and the dying overs. It was an region that won them the 2021 World Cup through Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade, who had been moulded into death pitchers despite being home bowlers. They have found a world class expert in Tim David but he has come off the boil significantly since a sizzling stop to his career, albeit he is also contributing in the most challenging of batting jobs. Australia suffered defeat to Afghanistan and India in the recent T20 World Cup in the Caribbean, which was a setback for the two countries. They also suffered a bad defeat against England in Southampton, but it did not cost them the game, turning an 86-for-1 powerplay into a 179-run total after being bowled out without using all 20 overs.
Australia's selectors want to build flexibility with all their T20I batters, and had tried to give Short some opportunities in the middle order on last year's five-match T20I tour of India, this year's tour of New Zealand and also in three of his four ODI appearances. However, it has become abundantly clear that Short enjoys being most at the top of the scale. In T20s, he averages 29.96 and strikes at 150.09 batting in the top three compared to 14.09 at a strike rate of 113.97 batting at No. 4 or lower.
The strike rate pergence is even higher in his limited T20I appearances. In his seven innings pitched in the top three, he only manages to score 126.66 in his two innings at No. 6.
He clearly fits right in with Head in Australia's game plan to work as hard as they can in the powerplay, and it is obvious that he has his method worked out at the top of the order.
" It's a pretty clear game plan from the coaching staff," Short said". Just go out there with freedom and take the positive options. Trav and I sort of go into the games with that mindset."
Short being preferred to Fraser-McGurk for the opening game of this series is not a guarantor of the selectors ' future thinking as they plan for the 2026 World Cup. Fraser-McGurk's talent remains a tantalising prospect. But even his IPL coach Ricky Ponting admitted this week on the Sky Sports Cricket podcast that his game still needs refining. Fraser-McGurk's all or nothing showing in Scotland was evidence of that where he faced 17 dot balls in 23 deliveries across three innings.
Short, in contrast, did not score a boundary until his sixth delivery when he hit back-to-back sixes off Reece Topley with one of his seven balls in Southampton.
Captain Mitchell Marsh said earlier this week there was" no pressure "on Fraser-McGurk to succeed immediately at international level. However, Short is putting some pressure on himself to give Australia a wealth of opening options.
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