Aussies already eyeing elusive crown

The next ICC World T20 tournament is still more than two-and-a-half years away but Chris Lynn has revealed Australia have already begun formulating plans to snag the only major piece of major silverware to elude them.

Australia have squandered all six of their attempts to claim the WT20 title, missing the semi-finals on three occasions and making the decider just once, as rivals India, England, West Indies, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have all lifted the trophy at least once.

Australia's struggles in the shortest format – they currently rank a lowly seventh on the International Cricket Council's T20I rankings – have mystified players and fans alike given they, notwithstanding some notable recent troughs in the other formats, are among the world's best in the Test and ODI arenas.

Those poor returns remain even more puzzling considering the strength of the KFC Big Bash League, arguably the world's best domestic T20 league, with the lucrative Indian Premier League its only real competitor.

They will have no better chance to change all that when the next WT20, to be held Down Under for the first time, is contested in October-November 2020.

And although that tournament remains a distant speck on the horizon, Lynn says preparation for 2020 has already begun.

"Realistically, we are talking about it because you don't just win a World Cup a month before," the Queenslander said after leading the Aussies to a seven-wicket win over New Zealand in the Gillette T20I tri-series opener on Saturday.

"Preparation starts now and we want to build a nucleus of a side now.

"That was only my sixth T20 for Australia. (With) every game I play, I'm going to be more relaxed and be more familiar with the guys. I've always been in and out of the side and generally most of the guys can say that, bar a couple.

"So if we can familiarise (ourselves) with everyone, we'll just go from strength to strength."

Using an analogy from another of his passions, rugby league, Lynn added: "It's just like a halfback and five-eighth, they just know what's going on with each other. Then away you go."

Australia's dismantling of a full-strength New Zealand side only recently knocked off their perch as the world's top-ranked T20I side could be an early glimpse of a resurgence in the shortest format.

The side already looks far more settled, and perhaps a little stronger, than the one that took to the field in the 2-1 series loss to Sri Lanka last summer.

Test stars Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Marsh are all missing for this series, giving the likes of Lynn, Andrew Tye, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis the chance to push their T20 claims.

Stand-in captain David Warner, whose own inclusion in the squad for the tri-series while his fellow South Africa Test squad members sit it out is a testament to Australia's desire to improve their results, said scheduling T20Is when their best players are available should be a priority.

"It doesn't sit well with us at all," Warner said earlier this week of Australia's T20I ranking.

"We've probably said it for the last 12-24 months about improving … how we play this format.

"We've spoken about scheduling numerous times and being able to fit the Twenty20 Internationals into the calendar and getting everyone fit and ready for that."

Australia could play another T20I tri-series later this year, with a yet-to-be-confirmed tournament in Zimbabwe also featuring Pakistan currently on the cards for July. 

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has previously outlined that Australia will likely play more T20Is and fewer Tests and ODIs from 2019 under the ICC's planned revamp to give international matches greater context.

"There will definitely be more (international) T20 cricket," Sutherland said in October.

"But we'll also be quite strategic about it in terms of scheduling matches to create experiences for the development of our team.

"One of the things we'll be doing is thinking carefully about where we might put more emphasis on one-day cricket, say leading into World Cups or the Champions Trophy.

"Then more emphasis on T20 cricket when we're leading into a WT20 event."

- with AAP

Gillette T20 trans-Tasman Tri-Series

Australia squad: David Warner (c), Aaron Finch (vc), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, D'Arcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa.

England squad: Eoin Morgan (c), Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, David Willey, Mark Wood.

New Zealand squad: Kane Williamson (c), Tom Blundell, Trent Boult, Tom Bruce, Colin de Grandhomme, Martin Guptill, Anaru Kitchen, Colin Munro, Seth Rance, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Ross Taylor, Ben Wheeler. 

PM's XI v England Manuka Oval, February 2. Tickets

First T20I Australia v NZ, SCG, February 3. Tickets

Second T20I Australia v England, Blundstone Arena, February 7. Tickets

Third T20I Australia v England, MCG, February 10. Tickets

Fourth T20I NZ v England, Wellington, February 14

Fifth T20I NZ v Australia, Eden Park, February 16

Sixth T20I NZ v England, Seddon Park, February 18

Final TBC, Eden Park, February 21