Key takeaways from the England vs Australia T20Is
What's the story
England emerged triumphant in the T20I series against Australia by a 2-1 margin. The Aussies, who were down 0-2, won the dead rubber by five wickets. They are atop the ICC T20I Rankings with 275 rating points, with England amassing 271. Both teams had their moments in an interesting series. Here we present the list of key takeaways.
Stoinis
Australia unsure regarding Stoinis' position
Marcus Stoinis' position in the team is rather an unknown aspect. He was backed as the finisher in the first two games. Stoinis produced scores 23* and 35. However, in the third T20I, he was squeezed into the top order. He came in and scored 26 at number 3. Australia need to settle the situation here and identify a particular role for Stoinis.
Duo
What about Smith and Maxwell?
Steve Smith had a forgettable series after managing scores of 18. 10 and 3 respectively. Smith does his best work at number three and pushing him down the order wouldn't benefit the Aussies as seen on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Glenn Maxwell didn't live up to his hype ahead of the IPL 2020 season. With scores of 1, 26 and 6, Maxwell was underwhelming.
Mitchell Marsh
Australia can back Marsh as the finisher
Australia have several options in that finishing role, however, they need to identify the best possible bet in that number six position. If Stoinis comes in at number five, then Mitchell Marsh can be backed at number six. He was only picked for the third T20 but he made the chance count. He scored 39* runs off 36 balls to help his side win.
Rashid
Adil Rashid is a leading asset for England
England leg-spinner Adil Rashid finished the series with six wickets at 12.50 and an economy rate of 6.25. His 3/21 in the third match was his best spell in the series, but it was the damage he did in the opening T20I that set the tone. He had removed Smith and Maxwell within four balls to flip the match on its head.