Colombo: Languishing at the bottom half of the rankings, Australia will aim to start their World Twenty20 campaign on a positive note when they take on “giant killers” Ireland in their tournament opener on Wednesday.
Australia have so far failed to tame the shortest format of the game and it will be a test of their character when they face the William Porterfield-led Irish side, who are well known to spring a few surprises.
Though, they have just one victory to their credit against an ICC Full Member side in T20s, their unpredictability can well be gouged by a thumping win over England in the 50-over World Cup last year.
The Irishmen have won both their warm-up matches in the build up to the championship and interestingly, they were also briefly ahead of Australia on the ranking list earlier this month, something that the Aussies will be mindful of.
Mickey Arthur, coach of the boys from Down Under summarised the threat posed by Ireland by saying, “I will only rest easy when that game’s passed.”
He also noted their giant-killer status and said that any team could win a T20 match if they have a good day. (PTI)
