Mark Waugh declares Marsh ripe to fire at ICC Cricket World Cup

All-rounder Mitchell Marsh could be Australia’s secret weapon at the ICC Cricket World Cup, after dominating the lead-up matches, ahead of their tournament opener against India on Sunday.

The powerfully built Marsh has been parachuted in to the opening batsman position, following an injury to Travis Head, which will keep him out the line-up until the middle parts of the World Cup.

Marsh will open with David Warner and the pair look like they could be crucial to the Aussies chances of performing in India, with both in fine form in the lead-up.

But Marsh, who has batted in most positions for Australia, averages 73 when opening, in comparison to 35.8 when batting at no.6, although this is from a small sample size.

This form at the top of the order has sparked memories of when Australia moved Mark Waugh to the top of the batting-order soon after he was dropped from the Test setup, and he went on to become one of the great ODI top order batsmen in his era.

Waugh, who is now a commentator, believes Marsh could be an absolute weapon at the World Cup, which will be played on spin-friendly and often smaller grounds, which suit Marsh’s power hitting.

“He’s a good player of fast bowling, coming from Western Australia,” Waugh said.

“He can take really take advantage of the fielding restrictions in the first ten overs with only two men out. He can be very dangerous and set the tone for the whole innings.

“He could do really well opening the batting, especially in the subcontinent against the new ball.

“In India, it’s a lot tougher in the middle (overs) once the pitch starts to slow down and the balls spinning and you’ve just come to the crease.

“(Opening) is definitely the best place to bat, up front against the new ball, when the field’s up and the ball’s nice and hard, so you get good value with your runs.

“Then when the spinners do come on, you’ve obviously been at the crease for a fair while, so you’re used to the conditions and you’re seeing the ball well.”

Australia open their World Cup campaign against India in Chennai on Sunday, from 7.30pm AEST, with the visitors priced at $2.20 to defeat the home team. India is the $1.67 favourite to win this match and the $3.50 favourite to win the ICC World Cup with online bookmakers.

Mitchell Marsh World Cup odds

Mitchell Marsh is paying $5 to be the leading run-scorer against India on Sunday, which looks like great value, given he will be at the top of the order when the ball is still hard.

He is also paying a lucrative $14 with cricket betting sites to win match of the match on Sunday, which are nice odds considering he is also a chance to bowl during the Indian innings.

Marsh is paying $19 to win player of the tournament with Neds online betting, with the two Aussies ahead of him being David Warner and Steve Smith (both $17).

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