Chasing the holy grail: Australia hunting their most elusive silverware

Australia's empty spot in the trophy cabinet for an ICC Men's T20 World Cup has been well-documented, though Aaron Finch's men have performed in all facets through a tricky Super 12 stage, and are two wins away from ending their tournament hoodoo.

With the bat, the headlines surround a return to form for David Warner and the evolution of Mitchell Marsh at No.3. Emphatic in their chase of 158 in Abu Dhabi against the West Indies and pushing South Africa out of semi-final reach, the pair fired ominous warning shots.

On the bowling side, it's been a case of sticking to their guns. Accompanying the pace trio of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins, Adam Zampa's tricks and Glenn Maxwell's finger-spinning nous has proved most effective.

Recovering from their defeat to England, the Australians remained cool under pressure, making key adjustments to brush aside Bangladesh and West Indies. The defeat may have just imparted the vital lessons the Australians needed to learn in order to reach a World Cup-winning level.

The final-over victory over South Africa at the start of the Super 12 stage felt like an important result at the time, and so it proved, with the five-wicket win meaning ultimately proving enough.

Sri Lanka were rather comfortably dispatched in match two for Aaron Finch’s side, with David Warner and the skipper impressing with the bat.

But a crushing loss to England third up really put the pressure on Australia in the qualification race. It wasn’t just that it was an eight-wicket defeat that hurt, but that England chased down 126 with 50 balls remaining, severely impacting the net run rate situation going into the final two rounds.

Thankfully, from an Australian perspective, that NRR damage was short-lived, with Bangladesh bowled out for 73 next up. The fact that Finch, Warner and Marsh chased it down in just 38 balls more than made up for the run rate losses to England.

And another eight-wicket win over West Indies on the final day ultimately proved enough.

Qualification wasn’t confirmed even after that fourth win, with South Africa needing a win and a significant but gettable run-rate swing against England. But while the Proteas got the win, they didn’t overturn the NRR difference, with Australia going through in second place to line up a likely semi-final against Pakistan.

As the pace artillery of Starc, Cummins and Hazlewood continue to give little away, the form of Adam Zampa's leg-spin has meant that opponents have been unable to escape Australia's grips.

Enjoying an almost career-defining campaign, Zampa's control has been a thorn in the side of opposition batting line-ups, unable to release the pressure in the middle overs.

With the bat, individual struggles of the top order look like a distant memory. Finch has played his way into form throughout the campaign, while Warner has put a tricky year behind him, finding the middle of the bat with two fifties.

Meanwhile, at number three, Marsh has gone from strength to strength, particularly against opposition quicks. The all-rounder has found tournament rhythm, averaging 40 at a strike rate of 148.14, made more impressive by scoring a bulk of his runs in the middle overs.

While the top order has clicked into gear, questions remain surrounding runs in the middle to death overs, should early wickets be lost.

More effective with the ball in the tournament, Maxwell will lament his batting form thus far, comping just 29 runs in five innings, at an average of just 9.66.

Despite the dip in form, Maxwell is certainly capable of a turnaround. With recent success in the second half of the IPL, and in similar conditions, two solid knocks to build on Australia's top order form would go a long way to the elusive trophy.

Further down, an unintended side-effect of the top order's recent success is a lack of time in the middle for the likes of Matthew Wade and Steve Smith.

The pair have batted just twice and three times respectively at the tournament, and given the bowling threats of Pakistan, both players may need to play bigger roles.

On the bowling side, captain Finch would probably like one more reliable option in the tournament's latter stages.

With four frontline bowlers joined by Maxwell, the medium pace of Marcus Stoinis has proved expensive, though Mitchell Marsh's 0/16 (3) will encourage the skipper.

Ashton Agar may find himself back in the XI, though it would force the Australians to sacrifice a recognised batter for the luxury.

Adam Zampa – Only Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga has taken more wickets than Australia’s x-factor spinner, and Zampa’s threat – particularly through the middle overs – is a real boost to the attack. The quality of Australia’s seam attack is clear for all to see, but add in some real wicket-taking spin overs and it gives opponents something to think about. England made it clear how much of a threat Zampa is by their intent to take him down.

**David Warner –**187 runs at an average of 46.75 is a much-improved return for a batter who had struggled for runs in T20 matches of late. Warner himself says that lack of runs comes from a lack of opportunities. But having him in form at the top of the order can only be a good thing.