ENG vs AUS 2024, ENG vs AUS 1st T20I Match Preview

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Ready for more England vs Australia? Whatever your answer, there’s plenty more to come for the rest of the month, with eight matches in 18 days, starting with the first of three T20Is in Southampton. And from a paying bettors’ perspective, the late-season action is popular, with five of the games sold out after a Test series in Sri Lanka saw the under-packed stands a talking point on some days.

The ridiculousness of England’s schedule is once again in the spotlight as this series begins a day after the final day of the Oval Test, had that gone the full distance. That means an almost entirely separate squad for the T20Is – Josh Hull is the only overlap – in England’s first series after a bumpy T20 World Cup campaign that ultimately led to the sacking of Matthew Mott.

The coaching roles of the England men’s team will be unified under Brendon McCullum, but not until January. Marcus Trescothick will take charge for this series and the West Indies tour in November (which takes place between the Test series against Pakistan and New Zealand). There will at least be a stand-in captain for the T20Is, with Phil Salt deputising for the injured Jos Buttler.

Yet the England squad is not short of experience with the white ball: despite a shocking ODI World Cup and an uninspired T20, the depth of the squad still seems considerable and perhaps that is because the golden generation was given a little too much time before the next generation was unleashed.

Ahead of the three Scotland matches that Australia began their tour with, Mitchell Marsh played down claims that it was a T20 “restart” for his team after their disappointing World Cup exit, where they were actually knocked out by England. The Australian team’s changed form as they look to 2026 appears more subtle than that of the home team, although some players from England’s Test team would have been included had the schedule allowed.

They performed well in the three matches against Scotland and Josh Inglis and Cameron Green, who were not included in the T20 World Cup squad, put in impressive performances after Travis Head’s comeback in the opening game.

The pace bowling resources have been depleted by the numerous injuries – the worst affected being Nathan Ellis, who will not be taking part in the tour – but Josh Hazlewood has joined the side after missing the Scotland game with a minor calf injury. It is likely that Australia will continue to tinker with their combination and batting order during this series.

Form curve

(the last five completed games, most recent first)
England 😂 …
Australia WWWLL

In the spotlight: Jacob Bethell and Jake Fraser-McGurk

Given the restructuring of the England squad, one could pick out almost any player, and perhaps it is easier to shine the spotlight on the entire eleven. But all-rounders Jacob BethellBorn in Barbados, he has been attracting a lot of attention this season and his talent is already known on the world stage with BBL and SA20 contracts. He had a stellar season in the T20 Blast for Birmingham Bears, averaging 36.10 and having a strike rate of 153.61, including 50 off 15 balls. His teammate Dan Mousley, who is also in the England squad, said: “I haven’t seen many people hit a ball like that.”

Jake Fraser McGurk was allowed to replace David Warner at the top of the Australian order but it wasn’t the easiest of starts against Scotland with two zeros either side of 16 to start his T20I career. He has permission to go full throttle from the first ball but the slow, two-tiered surfaces didn’t seem to suit him, a world away from the flat pitches in the IPL where he made his name earlier this year after a breakthrough summer at home. After a lean MLC, it means Fraser-McGurk has scored 97 runs in his last ten T20 innings. With Matt Short available for this series following the early birth of his first baby after originally only being part of the ODI team and others who could easily open, Fraser-McGurk may not play all three matches against England or he could potentially be tried out in a different position.

Team News: England debuts Bethell and Cox

England confirmed their team line-up more than 24 hours before the match. Bethell and Jordan Cox will play their first international matches, while Jamie Overton, called up as a replacement for Jos Buttler, also makes his T20I debut as a pure batsman as he continues to recover from a back injury. Saqib Mahmood is playing his first international match since March 2023.

England: 1 Phil Salt (Captain & Week), 2 Will Jacks, 3 Jordan Cox, 4 Liam Livingstone, 5 Jacob Bethell, 6 Sam Curran, 7 Jamie Overton, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Adil Rashid, 10 Saqib Mahmood, 11 Reece Topley

Marsh did not name Australia’s XI but confirmed that Hazlewood is fit again after his calf injury. He also said that if Short plays, he will open the batting, potentially meaning Fraser-McGurk is out.

Australia: (possible) 1 Travis Head, 2 Jake Fraser-McGurk/Matt Short, 3 Mitchell Marsh (captain), 4 Josh Inglis (weekend), 5 Marcus Stoinis, 6 Cameron Green, 7 Tim David, 8 Sean Abbott, 9 Xavier Bartlett, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood

Pitch and conditions

There wasn’t much grass on the pitch and some of the country’s larger boundaries should be suitable for Australia. The autumn weather is pleasant, if cool in the evenings. The game is a sell-out and Hampshire are switching on 1000 solar panels at the Utilita Bowl before the game.

Statistics and interesting facts

Southampton hosted the first T20I between these teams in 2005, when Australia were eliminated by 79 points ahead of the Ashes in the summer. In 2020, three T20 matches were played behind closed doors during the Covid pandemic, which England won 2-1.

Josh Inglis currently has an average of 42.87 with a strike rate of 176.80 when batting at No. 3 in T20Is

In 24 T20Is between these teams, the scores are 11-11 for all teams with two no-scores

Quotes

“We see him in a key role as Jos’ right-hand man… his name is synonymous with the leadership qualities you expect from your players within the group and he has all the attributes you want and the respect you expect from a captain.”
Marcus Trescothick to Salt’s representation for Buttler

“No matter what format, they are our oldest rivals and we love coming here. The reception we get as an Australian cricket team is always good.”
Mitchell Marsh about the renewed match against England

Andrew McGlashan is deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo