Coach Justin Langer says Australia’s game plan is clear ahead of the World Cup
Australian coach Justin Langer says his team’s plans for its World Cup defence are “crystal clear” after a 2-1 series loss to India which he was adamant could have gone either way.
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Australian coach Justin Langer says his team’s plans for its World Cup defence are “crystal clear” after a 2-1 series loss to India which he was adamant could have gone either way.
Langer conceded India was just too good for the home team all summer with his sides, in both the Test and one-day arenas, remaining a work in progress.
The one-day side especially is coming off a low base with the Indian defeat a sixth-straight series loss, just five months out from the World Cup defence in England.
But Langer said he saw “light at the end of the tunnel” for his new-look white-ball outfit which is being formed to play a certain way when the Aussies look to go back-to-back.
Selectors put their cards on the table before the series began when they picked batsmen Peter Handscomb and Usman Khawaja, putting a premium on precision and persistence rather than all-out attack.
A win in game one, and taking the final two games down to the wire was enough for Langer to walk away confident Australia was on the right track, albeit with room for lots of improvement.
“It’s not as if it’s been a really one-sided series,” he said after Friday’s loss.
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“I was really proud of the way the boys kept fighting, we have done it all summer. India have been too good for us … but it’s been pretty close really. We’ve seen some real positives.
“We’re crystal clear on the game plan, and I feel we have executed it really well with the bat in the first two games.
“We got really close this series. It came down to the last over twice. It’s been a real arm-wrestle. We are very clear how we want to play our cricket, no doubt, and that is a great feeling for us.”
Langer identified Handscomb and fast bowler Jhye Richardson as “shining lights” for the series, which was played without frontline quicks Mitch Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins.
He conceded that captain Aaron Finch was in a bit of a rut, but said his exit to the Big Bash, before the next series against India in February, could help him recapture his best.
“He’ll come good. He’s got 11 ODI hundreds,” Langer said.
“India had really good plans for him, and when you are searching for runs, there is no lonelier place in the world.
“Time away from that absolute glare of playing Test and one-day cricket against India … he’ll find a bit of freedom again.”
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Originally published as Coach Justin Langer says Australia’s game plan is clear ahead of the World Cup
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