Marsh urges Short to maintain aggression on debut

Set to debut for Australia against South Africa, Matt Short has been urged by captain Mitch Marsh to maintain the aggressive style that earned him international selection in the first place.

Short will open the batting against the Proteas on Thursday morning (2am AEST) as one of three debutants for Australia, alongside allrounder Aaron Hardie and left-arm quick Spencer Johnson.

The hard-hitting Victorian has made significant strides over past year, being crowned KFC BBL|12 player of the tournament last summer before converting his white-ball form into the Marsh Sheffield Shield with 483 runs at 80.5 (including two centuries) after the BBL break.

That purple patch saw him picked up by Punjab Kings for an inaugural stint in the Indian Premier League, and has culminated in what will be his first appearance for Australia.

Speaking ahead of the series opener, captain Mitch Marsh said his message to Short had been simple.

“(He’s) very exciting. He’s coming off an outstanding 12 months for the Strikers and Victoria last year and thoroughly deserves his place,” he told reporters.

“I’m looking forward to seeing him open the batting for Australia.

“I’ve encouraged him to not change anything and take the game on, and we’re looking forward to seeing how he goes.”

While Short’s rise could be described as steady, the emergence of Johnson has been far sharper.

In eight months the South Australian has gone from relative unknown to being billed as a potential successor to Mitchel Starc as a point-of-difference left-arm option.

Marsh said that, like Short, Johnson had been told to relish the opportunity.

“From our point of view we have no expectation – we’re excited to see a young man play his first game for Australia.

“He really burst onto the scene only last summer, he’s had a few injuries over the last few years that’ve held him back but he’s a super talent, bowls mid to high 140s (kmh) and swings the ball, so my only message to him is to make sure he enjoys this.

“Playing for Australia is a lot of fun and he thoroughly deserves to be here.”

For Marsh himself the T20 series – and ODI campaign to follow in which he will also serve as captain – also mark a significant moment in his career.

Already a key member of Australia's white-ball teams, the 31-year-old thrust his name back to the forefront of Australian cricket after scoring a run-a-ball 118 following a surprise Test call-up at Headingley in the recently completed Ashes series.

And now, given Australia does not currently have a T20 captain following the retirement of Aaron Finch, the series presents a huge opportunity for the West Australian to bed down the role.

The 31-year-old has said he aimed to maintain the positive changeroom culture created by coach Andrew McDonald and close friend Pat Cummins.

While there had been a number of changes to Australia’s XI for this T20 series owing to injuries and senior players resting, Marsh was confident the squad would deliver.

“We’ve got some fresh faces in this squad, but I’ve got a lot confidence that they’re all going to be able to perform at international level,” he said.

“We’ve also got a lot of guys who’ve played for Australia in this team.

“Whether or not we’re underdogs, I don’t know … we’ve got some debutants, they’ve got some debutants. It should make for an exciting series.”

Boasting an XI with several allrounders and a number of batters who can bowl, Australia have eight genuine bowling options for the first T20I.

But while Marsh said flexibility was important, he would likely turn to “five or six main bowlers” to get the job done.

The hosts have similarly rested several key players for the three-match series, with Quinton de Kock, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada all sitting out.

Captain Aiden Markram confirmed on Tuesday that South Africa would forego using the hard-hitting Tristan Stubbs as a spin option, and that he would instead keep wicket in the absence of de Kock.

“He has been working really hard the last couple of weeks,” Markram said, insisting his team would not use “inexperience as an excuse” for poor performances against Australia.

“He is a guy who will never leave a stone unturned. He has spent hours and hours working on his keeping.

“I think it adds another element to his game to take forward in his cricketing journey.

“We have seen him do well with the ball, we all know what he can do with the bat and now he has got the gloves, so he is an all-dimension player.”

2023 Qantas T20s v South Africa

August 30: First T20I, Durban (August 31, 2am AEST)

September 1: Second T20I, Durban (September 2, 2am AEST)

September 3: Third T20I, Durban, September 3, 10pm AEST

Australia T20 squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Jason Behrendorff, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Matt Short, Marcus Stoinis, Ashton Turner, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa

South Africa T20 squad: Aiden Markram (c), Temba Bavuma, Matthew Breetzke, Dewald Brevis, Gerald Coetzee, Donovan Ferreira, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Sisanda Magala, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs, Lizaad Williams, Rassie van der Dussen

2023 Qantas ODIs v South Africa

September 7: First ODI, Bloemfontein (D/N), 9pm AEST

September 9: Second ODI, Bloemfontein (D/N), 9pm AEST

September 12: Third ODI, Potchefstroom (D/N), 9pm AEST

September 15: Fourth ODI, Centurion (D/N), 9pm AEST

September 17: Fifth ODI, Johannesburg, 6pm AEST

Australia ODI squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Tanveer Sangha, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa

South Africa ODI squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Dewald Brevis, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Brjor Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Sisanda Magala, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi, Wayne Parnell, Kagiso Rabada, Tristan Stubbs, Rassie van der Dussen