Nottingham: Australia are prepared for some hostile short bowling from West Indies in their second game at Trent Bridge, captain Aaron Finch said on Wednesday.
West Indies shot Pakistan out for a dismal 105 in their World Cup opening game last week in a devastating spell, exploiting the weakness of the Pakistani batsmen.
They then wrapped up a seven-wicket victory over the 1992 world champions.
But Finch said the key to beating a resurgent West Indies is to have various strategies on hand to counter bowling attacks as teams could adjust very quickly in the tournament.
“I think if you just stick to one plan, then teams get on top of you pretty quickly or they adjust quick enough,” Finch told reporters during a training session.
“I think if you over-attack and continue to go too short or you continue to go too full, whatever it might be, it’s about your follow-ups from them balls.”
Australia are chasing a record sixth World Cup win in the 50-over edition of the game having won the previous one in 2015. However, Finch warned against complacency especially against dangerous West Indies opening batsman Chris Gayle who is set to retire at the end of the tournament.
“I think when you come up against someone as dangerous as Chris, you have to be prepared, like I said before, that he’s going to hit boundaries,” Finch added.
“So I think it’s important that you come prepared to take the contest to him because he definitely does that the other way.”
Both teams have won their opening games and are looking to build momentum in their second game at Trent Bridge, a venue which saw the highest one-day international score of 481 runs racked up last year when England beat Australia.
Asked about whether that particular day was a talking point for some of the Australian players, Finch downplayed the experience.
“I think just before we turned up to the training yesterday, a few boys talked about their previous experiences here, which obviously haven’t been overly pleasant, but we’re in the home change rooms, which is a first for everyone, which is nice,” he said.
