When Michael Klinger smashed a six into a delirious WACA crowd to win the Big Bash League (BBL) title for the Perth Scorchers in late January, it effectively ended the Australian cricket summer for mainstream sports fans in the country. Of course, cricket season had not officially ended upon completion of the BBL final with the resumption of the Sheffield Shield starting soon after but, sadly, crowds have been almost non-existent and the lack of media coverage is jarring for such a beloved Australian sporting institution.
However, perhaps oblivious to some, the never ending hodgepodge of internationals haven't yet finished with Australia and Sri Lanka playing in a three-match Twenty20 series starting on Friday (February 17). With Australia set to field a second-string team - with all their best players currently touring India - the series has been derided as being trivial, notably by Stuart Clark, the former Australian paceman, who labelled it the 'Who Cares Cup'.
The swansong of the international summer may feel decidedly flat - leaving some yearning for the old tri-series deciders which for so long concluded the international part of the season - but, still, it is an opportunity for Australia to trial some new players while reward several indefatigable veterans, notably Klinger who has been selected at the ripe age of 36.
Australia has historically struggled in the T20 format with many believing the lack of continuity is to blame. Once again, Australia's main players will be absent and the scheduling of T20Is has been heavily scrutinised.
Perhaps the most intriguing thing will be off the field with a new look Australian coaching staff consisting of interim coach Justin Langer and assistants Ricky Ponting and Jason Gillespie. Langer, whose success at the helm of the Scorchers continues to astound, is viewed as the hot favourite to succeed current Australia coach Darren Lehmann, who will step down in 2019. The Western Australian has already had a taste of the role having filled in for Lehmann during Australia's tour of the West Indies last June.
Gillespie, who coaches the Adelaide Strikers and had a successful run at Yorkshire, is also highly rated and could emerge as a contender to succeed Lehmann if he wishes to pursue the gig. Ponting's future ambitions are unknown but undoubtedly the former long-time captain is one of the most respected figures in Australian cricket. With three revered figures steering the ship, the series could foreshadow Australian cricket.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will be aiming to extract revenge after losing both T20 matches at home to Australia last September. Prior to that, Sri Lanka had dominated the matchup in this format winning five straight games, including three in Australia.
Sri Lanka will be buoyed by the return of firebrand paceman Lasith Malinga, who has been out of international cricket for almost 12 months. In the practice match against the Prime Ministers XI, Malinga revived memories of his blistering best with a thunderbolt that went right through a bewildered D'Arcy Short.
With captain Angelo Mathews missing the series due to injury, Upul Tharanga will take charge of a team brimming with confidence in this format after a 2-1 series victory in South Africa last month. It was the only bright spot on a bleak tour for Sri Lanka, who lost all eight matches across the other two formats.
When: Friday, February 17, 2017 - 7.40pm local
Where: Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
What to expect: Unsurprisingly for Melbourne, there is a chance of a shower interrupting the match. Typical of T20 cricket, plenty of runs should be in the offering.
Team News
Australia: Klinger is almost certain to make his international debut after Langer's public show of support and open the batting alongside captain Aaron Finch. Klinger's Scorchers teammate Jhye Richardson, the surprise inclusion of the squad, could also make his international debut after earning a berth following a dazzling man-of-the-match performance in the BBL final.
Sri Lanka: All eyes will be on Malinga, who is set to make his return to international cricket after almost 12 months. Upul Tharanga will be Sri Lanka's skipper for the series replacing the injured Angelo Mathews.
What they said:
"Every time you represent your country, it's a huge honour and there's going to be some guys who do it for the first time," said Aaron Finch
"We've tried to in recent times not to worry about who the names are that much, but to get out and play the ball and execute our skills as much as possible," said Graham Ford
Did you know?
Before winning both matches in Sri Lanka last year, Australia had lost five straight T20 matches to the island nation.
Australia's last T20 win at home was in November, 2014 against South Africa at the Sydney Cricket Ground. However, they have only played three times in Australia since then - a series whitewash against India in early 2016.
Sri Lanka has won all three matches against Australia in Australia.
However, perhaps oblivious to some, the never ending hodgepodge of internationals haven't yet finished with Australia and Sri Lanka playing in a three-match Twenty20 series starting on Friday (February 17). With Australia set to field a second-string team - with all their best players currently touring India - the series has been derided as being trivial, notably by Stuart Clark, the former Australian paceman, who labelled it the 'Who Cares Cup'.
The swansong of the international summer may feel decidedly flat - leaving some yearning for the old tri-series deciders which for so long concluded the international part of the season - but, still, it is an opportunity for Australia to trial some new players while reward several indefatigable veterans, notably Klinger who has been selected at the ripe age of 36.
Australia has historically struggled in the T20 format with many believing the lack of continuity is to blame. Once again, Australia's main players will be absent and the scheduling of T20Is has been heavily scrutinised.
Perhaps the most intriguing thing will be off the field with a new look Australian coaching staff consisting of interim coach Justin Langer and assistants Ricky Ponting and Jason Gillespie. Langer, whose success at the helm of the Scorchers continues to astound, is viewed as the hot favourite to succeed current Australia coach Darren Lehmann, who will step down in 2019. The Western Australian has already had a taste of the role having filled in for Lehmann during Australia's tour of the West Indies last June.
Gillespie, who coaches the Adelaide Strikers and had a successful run at Yorkshire, is also highly rated and could emerge as a contender to succeed Lehmann if he wishes to pursue the gig. Ponting's future ambitions are unknown but undoubtedly the former long-time captain is one of the most respected figures in Australian cricket. With three revered figures steering the ship, the series could foreshadow Australian cricket.
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka will be aiming to extract revenge after losing both T20 matches at home to Australia last September. Prior to that, Sri Lanka had dominated the matchup in this format winning five straight games, including three in Australia.
Sri Lanka will be buoyed by the return of firebrand paceman Lasith Malinga, who has been out of international cricket for almost 12 months. In the practice match against the Prime Ministers XI, Malinga revived memories of his blistering best with a thunderbolt that went right through a bewildered D'Arcy Short.
With captain Angelo Mathews missing the series due to injury, Upul Tharanga will take charge of a team brimming with confidence in this format after a 2-1 series victory in South Africa last month. It was the only bright spot on a bleak tour for Sri Lanka, who lost all eight matches across the other two formats.
When: Friday, February 17, 2017 - 7.40pm local
Where: Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
What to expect: Unsurprisingly for Melbourne, there is a chance of a shower interrupting the match. Typical of T20 cricket, plenty of runs should be in the offering.
Team News
Australia: Klinger is almost certain to make his international debut after Langer's public show of support and open the batting alongside captain Aaron Finch. Klinger's Scorchers teammate Jhye Richardson, the surprise inclusion of the squad, could also make his international debut after earning a berth following a dazzling man-of-the-match performance in the BBL final.
Sri Lanka: All eyes will be on Malinga, who is set to make his return to international cricket after almost 12 months. Upul Tharanga will be Sri Lanka's skipper for the series replacing the injured Angelo Mathews.
What they said:
"Every time you represent your country, it's a huge honour and there's going to be some guys who do it for the first time," said Aaron Finch
"We've tried to in recent times not to worry about who the names are that much, but to get out and play the ball and execute our skills as much as possible," said Graham Ford
Did you know?
Before winning both matches in Sri Lanka last year, Australia had lost five straight T20 matches to the island nation.
Australia's last T20 win at home was in November, 2014 against South Africa at the Sydney Cricket Ground. However, they have only played three times in Australia since then - a series whitewash against India in early 2016.
Sri Lanka has won all three matches against Australia in Australia.
Teams:
Australia (From): Aaron Finch(c), Michael Klinger, Ben Dunk, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Tim Paine(w), Ashton Turner, James Faulkner, Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa, Andrew Tye, Jhye Richardson, Billy Stanlake
Sri Lanka (From): Niroshan Dickwella(w), Upul Tharanga(c), Dilshan Munaweera, Asela Gunaratne, Chamara Kapugedera, Milinda Siriwardana, Seekkuge Prasanna, Sachith Pathirana, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lasith Malinga, Lakshan Sandakan, Vikum Sanjaya, Kusal Mendis, Dasun Shanaka, Isuru Udana
