Dubai, Nov 13 (UNI) Australia skipper Aaron Finch Saturday said many had written his team off at the start, but still feels he has the squad to lift the T20 World Cup trophy for the first time in a faceoff against New Zealand here tomorrow.
"Yeah, like you said everyone had written us off but we had a lot of confidence within. We were really confident in the way we were preparing, in terms of our strategy. Yeah, I think it hasn't defied expectations, we came here with a clear plan to win the tournament and we still feel we have the squad to do that," he said in a pre-match press conference.
Fans had written off the Australian side in the initial stages of the tournament, because they had lost three series against Bangladesh, West Indies and New Zealand, but they bounced on some stellar performances sketched by David Warner, Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis, with the bat and Adam Zampa with the ball.
Australia, Finch said, is determined to lift the trophy which has eluded them, but did not ignore the potential of New Zealand, who can beat any side any day.
"It is one title that has eluded us in the past, the fact we are in the final gives us the best opportunity to rectify that. It will be a great game against New Zealand, they are a great side, looking forward to it," he said.
The spirit of the team is pretty high after pulling off a thriller against Pakistan in the second semifinals of the tournament, where a few of them had match-defining performances, Finch said.
Expressing satisfaction over his bowling attack, the Australian captain said Pat Cummins has been amazing and bowled crucial overs in the powerplay and in the middle. "The 19th over which he bowled in the last match was impressive. Our bowling attack has been impressive all the way through," he said.
Also impressive have been Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh for sharing the fifth bowler responsibility, he said.
On the poor form of Steve Smith, Finch said he is not concerned about it and added he is an invaluable player on big occasions.
"Not concerned one bit about his form, he is a world-class player. He is someone who in big games has shown how valuable he is. He has been hitting the ball well, no concerns whatsoever," he said.
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