Australia captain Mitchell Marsh has said the short turnaround from the Big Bash League (BBL) final to the T20I series against Pakistan will not affect his team’s preparedness.Marsh and seven other players in the squad featured in the BBL final on Sunday, arriving in Lahore around 24 hours before the first T20I, which begins on Thursday. Marsh said the busy schedule was not an issue, with the focus on the upcoming tri-series and preparation for the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, which begins on February 7.
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“I think one of the things about our group and most international teams is that preparation can look different on every tour,” Marsh told the media ahead of the opening match.“Most of the group has been preparing in Dubai, others have been preparing by playing games during the Big Bash. We are ready to go and looking forward to a great series,” he added.Marsh also addressed the absence of five senior players – Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Tim David, Nathan Ellis and Glenn Maxwell – who will miss the Pakistan series as they continue to work on their fitness. He confirmed that all five will link up with the squad in Sri Lanka where Australia will begin their T20 World Cup campaign.“This tour is really important for our preparation for the World Cup and we’ve got a few guys here who weren’t quite ready; they’re back home training and getting ready to meet us in Sri Lanka, so no stress from our end,” Marsh said.The Australian captain also spoke about the challenge of playing Pakistan away from home and highlighted the threat posed by their key players.“It’s always difficult to win away from home and especially in conditions like this, which can be foreign to us, so we’re really excited about this opportunity. We know Pakistan have amazing cricketers, of course Babar Azam, Shaheen, but we know it’s going to be a really good challenge in these conditions and we’re looking forward to it,” he said.“Pakistan has a great history of fast bowlers. There is no doubt that we will be looking forward to this challenge, especially of course. He is an amazing bowler and it will be a big challenge for our group,” he added.Australia will play their first T20 World Cup match on February 11 in Colombo.
