Victorian cricketer Matthew Short has emerged as a leading candidate to become Australia’s new permanent T20 opener after a dazzling performance in the series opener against England in Southampton.
Short and opening partner Travis Head combined for an 86-run opening partnership at the Rose Bowl to get Australia’s innings off to a blistering start on Thursday morning AEST.
The duo’s Powerplay demolition proved the difference between the two sides, with Australia winning the topsy-turvy contest by 28 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
Short, who replaced young gun Jake Fraser-McGurk in the starting XI for the series opener, blasted 41 from 26 deliveries, including consecutive sixes against England seamer Reece Topley in the second over.
The 28-year-old, who recently became a father, originally wasn’t named in Australia’s T20 squad for the United Kingdom tour, but following the birth of baby Austin, he joined the national team ahead of the England T20s.
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Speaking to reporters after the match, Short declared he wanted to cement his spot in the national white-ball teams with one eye on the 2026 T20 World Cup.
“With Davey Warner out, you know the spot’s opened up,” Short said.
“Fraser-McGurk’s been playing the last few games in Scotland, so never know where you sit, but I’m glad I took that opportunity tonight and played my role to help the team with the win.
“It’s a personal sort of goal of mine. I’ve been in and out of the side recently, over the last 12-18 months.
“Now that Davey’s out, I’m trying to take this opportunity and cement my spot in this side.”
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Fraser-McGurk, who rocketed into the national contention after a whirlwind 12 months at domestic level, registered scores of 0, 16 and 0 during last week’s tour of Scotland, missing a chance to push his case for further selection.
Although the 22-year-old offered a glimpse of his potential last summer, Short has been one of Australia’s most consistent white-ball cricketers over the past 24 months, smacking 999 runs at 45.40 for the Adelaide Strikers during that period and winning consecutive tournament MVP awards.
However, before Warner’s international retirement in June, there wasn’t any room for Short at the top of the order, with national selectors attempting to reinvent him as a middle-order batter. He didn’t open the batting in his previous four T20I appearances, notching scores of 22, 16 and 27.
Although the likes of Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade have successfully transitioned into T20 finishers, Short has flourished predominantly as an opener throughout his career. He averages 32.16 with a strike rate of 150.26 when opening in T20s, while that figure drops to 14.09 with a strike rate of 113.97 when batting at No. 4 or lower.
Matthew Short’s batting average by position in T20s
Opener – 32.16
No. 3 – 21.94
No. 4 – 18.50
No. 5 and lower – 12.43
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“I look at guys like Matthew Wade and Marcus Stoinis who probably dominated domestic cricket at the top of the order and didn’t quite get the opportunities at the top they wanted for Australia,” Short said last week.
“So they had to adapt through the middle, which they’ve done really well, so any time you get selected for a squad, you’ll take batting in any position.
“Personally I think I’m suited more at the top of the order, but if I want to play more cricket for Australia, then I need to be able to play more positions.”
The second T20 between England and Australia gets underway at Cardiff’s Sophia Gardens on Saturday morning at 3.30am AEST.
