Champions Trophy to give glimpse of post Big Three future

Australia will get a glimpse of the post 'Big Three' future with the task of upholding their unrivalled 50-over legacy to be placed squarely in the hands of bowlers who have made their names in T20 cricket.

The defending ODI champions are heading into the Champions Trophy without at least one of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins or Josh Hazlewood in their attack for the first time at an ICC event since the 2011 World Cup.  

Mainstay Adam Zampa will take on an outsized role leading a bowling line-up likely to be filled out by three of Sean Abbott (Australia’s most experienced paceman with 28 career ODIs), Nathan Ellis (9 ODIs), Spencer Johnson (3), Tanveer Sangha (3) and Ben Dwarshuis (2).

Allrounders Aaron Hardie and Matt Short (each with 13 ODIs to their name) are not flush with international experience either with the Aussies also covering for the absence of multi-skilled men Marcus Stoinis, Mitch Marsh and Cameron Green.

"Obviously those guys are big losses," captain Steve Smith, filling in for Cummins at the two-and-a-half week tournament, told cricket.com.au. "There's no doubt they're world-class performers and have done a tremendous job for a long time.

"But the reality is they're not here – so we have to focus on what we do have."

With World Cup winners like Smith, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell and Josh Inglis still manning the top-order, preventing opposition batting line-ups from posting massive scores on Pakistan grounds featuring flat pitches, rock-hard outfields and night-time dew shapes as their biggest challenge. Last night’s opening match in Karachi where New Zealand posted 320 batting first was largely in keeping with pre-tournament expectations.

Not since World Series Cricket decimated Australia's 1979 World Cup squad have the six-time men's ODI champions (and two-time Champions Trophy winners, the most recent in 2009) competed for a major limited-overs trophy with a greener attack than the one they have taken to Pakistan.

Their record over recent years in bilateral one-dayers without Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood is patchy; Australia have won only 10 of their past 28 ODIs when none have played, and just seven of 22 abroad.

"They're not going to be around forever," Travis Head told cricket.com.au's Unplayable Podcast.

"The guys that we've got here – someone like Nathan Ellis or Spencer or Shorty – have been desperate for international cricket. They've been banging the door down for a period of time now.

"I think someone like Nathan is going to be hugely important for us in this tournament if we go deep. This could be a kick-starter for him and his international career. Everyone needs their start, and everyone's been putting performances on the board and is definitely ready.

"It's just been that generational part where we've had four pretty good (bowlers, including Zampa) in the team for a long period of time.

"That moment was always going to come. It's happened all at once and I think we're more than ready with the guys coming in who are desperate. Sometimes that hunger and that excitement around that brings in new energy."

What Australia's new bowlers lack in international experience they make up for in T20 chops.

Like rookie batter Jake Fraser-McGurk, another fresh face in Australia's squad, Ellis and Johnson have both been exposed to the bright lights of the Indian Premier League. Abbott, Short, Hardie and Tanveer have varying degrees of experience in overseas leagues as well.

"I think it certainly helps in different aspects of the game," said Smith.

"You see sometimes (in ODIs) it is almost like a T20 game out there. They've got the attacking skills to be able to do certain things, or the defensive skills in their bowling to be able to get out of overs or out of different periods where it's tricky.

"I think that's the beauty of all the guys here. They've played a lot of T20 cricket, whether it be Big Bash or the Hundred or IPL or whatever other tournaments. They've certainly got all the skills and the options when placed under pressure."

Zampa, speaking on the Unplayable Podcast, downplayed his own role as Australia's new attack leader. The reality is he is often their most important bowler anyway, whether or not the Big Three quicks have flanked him.

Six more wickets at this Champions Trophy will see the 32-year-old become Australia's most prolific spinner at ICC events. Shane Warne and Brad Hogg each have 35 wickets.

Smith has kept the door ajar for both Zampa and Tanveer to play in the same XI ("there's certainly oppositions that it could definitely work against"). Not since Warne and Michael Bevan bowled in tandem during the 1996 and 1999 World Cups have the Aussies employed dual wrist-spinners.

That he has largely overcome the physical issues that plagued him through the 2023 World Cup – he soldered on admirably, finishing as the tournament’s leading spinner – bodes well for Australia.

"I feel like if we go deep in his tournament, that he's going to be a barometer," Head said of Zampa.

"He was in the (2023) World Cup as well. You look through all the ICC events that we've played in, he's been hugely important and he's been at the top of the list (of wicket takers).

"Spin in this format through the middle is hugely important. He's got a big role. I think he knows that. I think he thrives on that as well – he uses that motivation well."

2025 ICC Men's Champions Trophy

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Australia's Group B fixtures

February 22: Australia v England, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

February 25: Australia v South Africa, Rawalpindi (8pm AEDT)

February 28: Afghanistan v Australia, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 4: Semi-final 1, Dubai (8pm AEDT)

March 5: Semi-final 2, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 9: Final, Lahore or Dubai (8pm AEDT)

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Spencer Johnson, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Matt Short, Adam Zampa. Travelling reserve: Cooper Connolly