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Dubai, November 13: Australia skipper Aaron Finch on Saturday (November 13) said his side reaching the final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 has not defied expectations and they have the squad to go all the way in the tournament.
Australia and New Zealand will square off in the final of the World Cup on Sunday (November 14) at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
"Yeah, like you said everyone had written us off but we had a lot of confidence within ourselves. 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," said Finch during the pre-match press conference.
On the death over skills of Pat Cummins, Finch said: "Yeah, I think Pat has been amazing right throughout the tournament. He has bowled some crucial overs in the power play and in the middle.
“Like we saw in the last game, the 19th over to go for just three runs was so impressive. Our bowling unit has been impressive all the way through.
"I think the way Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh have contributed with Marcus Stoinis who has not had much opportunity with the ball, the way they have shared the fifth bowler responsibility has been fantastic. Really pleased with all our bowling attack," he added.
Matthew Wade and Stoinis had played remarkable innings against Pakistan to hand Australia an improbable win against Pakistan in the semifinals.
"We had a really good off day after the game against Pakistan and an optional training session today which most boys turned up to. We cannot wait for tomorrow.
“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," said Finch.
"I think the spirit amongst the team, we came here, lot of people had written us off in the start. The way we have gone about things has been impressive, everyone has had a match-defining performance at some stage. We are really up and about for tomorrow," he added.
Talking about the form of Steve Smith, the Australia skipper said: "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."
Australia and New Zealand have never won the T20 World Cup title.
Finch lauds Wade
Finch lavished praise on wicketkeeper batsman Wade for providing flexibility to the Australia batting line-up.
Wade had staged Australia's comeback in the tournament when he smashed three sixes in Shaheen Shah Afridi's over in the semifinal against Pakistan to take Australia past the winning post.
"Initially we talked about the other day, of the possibility of Matt (Matthew Wade) going in a little bit further up the order specially Shadab with a couple of overs to go.
"But we decided to hold him back towards the end and it paid off there. He is someone who is really versatile batter. He has opened the batting, batted at three and now he is down at seven. He provides a huge amount of flexibility to our team," said Finch.
Trans-Tasman rivals New Zealand and Australia will meet in the final of the ICC men's T20 World Cup final and while they are two contrasting units, it will be a battle of two highly equipped teams at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
Finch is excited to lock horns with New Zealand in the final showdown on Sunday.
"I think both teams have got a great history in cricket and as neighbours too Down Under. It's a great relationship and we play quite a bit against New Zealand," said Finch.
"And we always had great battles regardless of the format. It's pretty exciting to be playing against New Zealand, they are a great team led by Kane Williamson," he added.
Wade and Marcus Stoinis had produced a brilliant partnership to carry Australia to a stunning five-wicket victory over Pakistan in the semifinals. Chasing a 170+ target, Australia were reeling at 96 for 5 at one stage as Shadab Khan claimed four wickets.
But Wade and Stoinis changed the match in just 7.4 overs as the Aussies romped home with an over to spare. Wade hammered Afridi for three sixes in an over that reminded everyone of Michael Hussey’s onslaught against Saeed Ajmal in 2010.
"It was a tense game and the fact that we were in the game right till the end was very exciting.
“That's probably have been our changed approach in T20 cricket in this tournament and we have gone with seven specialist batters for that reason," Finch signed off.
