Aussies still to master T20

World champions in ODIs and number one in Tests, the Australians arrived in India determined to fill the one major gap in their trophy cabinet. But after defeat to New Zealand in their opener followed by a scrappy win over Bangladesh, skipper Steve Smith admits his youthful side are struggling to adapt to different conditions. The experiment of dropping David Warner down the order has not paid off with the vice captain making just six and 17 in his two innings. The decision to leave Aaron Finch, the top-ranked batsman in T20s, on the sidelines looks increasingly misguided.

England walk the talk

Evergreen New Zealand spinner Daniel Vettori joined cricket's exclusive 300 ODI wickets club Sunday with two early dismissals in their World Cup match against Afghanistan in Napier. He became the 12th player and first New Zealander to reach the milestone with the list headed by Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (534) and Wasim Akram of Pakistan (502), the only two players to have breached the 500-wicket barrier. He is the leading wicket-taker for New Zealand with 294 (eight wickets were for ICC World XI), and three short of equaling Jacob Oram's 36 World Cup wickets, which is New Zealand's best.

Hard times ahead for Lanka

It was known that defending champions Sri Lanka might struggle with the bat after the retirements of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene. But pace spearhead Lasith Malinga's injury withdrawal and Rangana Herath's lack of bite mean the holders lack obvious match-winners ahead of their tougher assignments against England and South Africa. Herath was one of the stand-outs in the 2014 triumph, taking five for three in the semi-final against New Zealand. But he went wicketless in Sunday's defeat against the West Indies where he was outbowled by team-mate Jeffrey Vandersay, a late replacement for Malinga.

Spin is king

Indian wickets are famous for being happy hunting grounds for spin bowlers and that's certainly been the case at the World T20. Slow-armers are commanding the top positions in the bowling tables while even at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium, a flatter ground known to favour pacemen, fast bowlers are finding life difficult. New Zealand spinners Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi and Nathan McCullum all feature in the top 10 most economical bowlers at the tournament. Santner's figures of 4-11 against India were a resounding vindication of the Black Caps decision to leave pacemen Trent Boult and Tim Southee on the bench.