Australia might have to sue some of the ex-players from their support staff as fielders during their warm-up match against Namibia ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024.

Mitchell Marsh admitted Australia are undermanned for their warm-up match against Namibia. (Photo: Getty)

New Delhi: Australia might be forced to use some of their support staff members as players in their upcoming warm-up match against Namibia ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024 next month. Australia are set to lock horns with Namibia in their first T20 World Cup warm-up match in Trinidad on Wednesday. However, they don’t have enough players to field a complete XI in the game.

The shortage of players has arisen due to the little turnaround time between the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 and the T20 World Cup 2024. A number of Australia’s first-team players were part of the IPL 2024 and will get a much-deserved break ahead of the T20 World Cup which means they will be missing the warm-up matches against Namibia and West Indies.

Australia have reportedly only 8 players available for the warm-up match against Namibia on Wednesday and might have to look at their support staff to field a proper XI. The members of the support staff can be used as fielders during the opposition’s innings in the match. Captain Mitchell Marsh, who is himself recovering from a hamstring injury, admitted Australia are undermanned but is not worried since it’s a practice match.

“We’re going to be undermanned. But it is a practice game. The guys who need to play will play as much as they can and we’ll figure it out from there,” Marsh told Cricket.com.au.

Marsh is in doubt to play against Namibia due to his hamstring issue but he might feature in the game as a batter and not bowl. Marsh himself was part of the Delhi Capitals squad in IPL 2024 but left the tournament early to nurse his hamstring injury back home. On Sunday, Mitchell Starc-starred Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) defeated Pat Cummins-led Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the final to win the IPL 2024 trophy.

Starc, Cummins and Travis Head, all of who are part of Australia’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad, were part of the final. Besides the trio, the likes of Glenn Maxwell and Cameron Green, who were part of the RCB squad were in action in the playoffs and are expected to link up with the rest of the Australian squad in Barbados by the end of this week.

On the other hand, star all-rounder Marcus Stoinis, who played for Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2024, is likely to join the rest of the squad only after their first warm-up match against Namibia on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Jake Fraser-McGurk and Matthew Short, who are part of the travelling reserves will land in the Caribbean next month after the start of Australia’s campaign in the T20 World Cup 2024.

Why Australia might have to field their support staff against Namibia?

With only eight players available for the warm-up match against Namibia, Australia might be forced to play some of their support staff members as the ICC rules state that the players representing a team must be from the same country. Australia have former players like Brad Hodge, George Bailey and Andrew McDonald in their support staff, who can come in handy on the field.

Stressing the importance of giving a break to the World Cup-bound players after the IPL 2024, Marsh said it was a well-thought-out decision. Marsh said the team management wanted to ensure that the players got to spend time with their family members ahead of what could be a gruelling World Cup campaign.

“It’s important to be flexible. Guys who have been at the IPL have been playing a lot of cricket. We prioritised giving them a couple of days at home to see their families, refresh, and play the long game for this tournament,” said Marsh.

“We will get our 15 (all together) eventually, but really important that we give them a break, even if it’s just a couple of days at home, that’s really important,” he added.

Australia will open their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against Oman on June 06. The 2021 champions will have all their players available before their tournament opener. One of the favourites for the title, Australia will look to get their campaign underway with a big win against minnows Oman.