Australia T20 World Cup 2016 profile: Steve Smith and company look to add the T20 title to their trophy cabinet

Coach: Darren Lehman

ICC World Ranking: 5

Squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, John Hastings, Josh Hazelwood, Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Peter Nevill (wk), Andrew Tye, Shane Watson, Adam Zampa.

Fixtures

Match 1: Australia vs New Zealand, Group 2

Date and Time: 18 March, Wednesday– 9.30am GMT/3pm IST

Venue: Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamshala

Match 2: Australia vs TBC (Qualifier 1A), Group 2

Date and Time: 21 March, Monday– 2pm GMT/7.30pm IST

Venue: M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore

Match 3: Australia vs Pakistan, Group 2

Date and Time: 25 March, Wednesday– 9.30am GMT/3pm IST

Venue: Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh

Match 4: India vs Australia, Group 2

Date and Time: 27 March, Sunday– 2pm GMT/7.30pm IST

Venue: Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh

Overview: Australia, the team who have been underachievers in the T20 version of the game, come into this edition desperate to add the T20 title to their glittering trophy cabinet. It is surprising that a team as dominant as Australia are yet to win the T20 World Cup trophy, considering the resources at their disposal.

In Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh they have a batting line-up that is devastating at their best, capable of murdering bowling attacks on their day. However, their lack of confidence while playing spin might just hurt their chances in Indian conditions. If they can deal with the spinners, they have a batting line-up that is well suited for the T20 format of the game.

It is their bowling, though, which looks a little weak on paper, with no bonafide superstar in their ranks. However, bowlers like James Faulkner, Nathan Coulter-Nile and Josh Hazelwood have T20 experience playing for various leagues around the world. It will be interesting to see how their spinners Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa perform in Indian conditions.

Key player

Shane Watson: The player of the series in the 2012 edition, Shane Watson's all-round skills are perfect for the shortest format of the game. His experience in playing in Indian conditions is an added boon for Australia, who will be depending on the experienced campaigner.

Watson has so far scored 435 runs in 20 matches in the ICC World T20, while also picking up 17 wickets. The Men from Down Under will be looking for a repeat performance of 2012 from Watson if they are to win their first T20 title.

World Cup history: Australia are yet to win the T20 World Cup, with their best performance coming in 2010 where they eventually lost to England in the final.

Prediction: Australia are drawn in Group 2 along with New Zealand, Pakistan, India and winner of Group A qualifiers. In what is a tough group, we predict Australia might just sneak past Pakistan and New Zealand to the knock-out stages.