Gary Kirsten Backs Australia to Come Hard in 2019 World Cup
Gary Kirsten.

Royal Challengers Bangalore coach, Gary Kirsten believes Australia are favourites to lift the ICC World Cup 2019 in England and Wales.

Australian Cricket received a major jolt a month back, as the likes of David Warner, and Steven Smith was handed a one-year ban from playing competitive cricket for Australia.

However, it is expected that the two mainstays of the Australian batting lineup will return to action by the time their defence of World Cup gets underway.

David Warner
Australia won the Trans-Tasman T20 tri-series. (Photo by Hannah Peters/Getty Images)

England are playing an aggressive and exciting brand of cricket: Kirsten

You can never count Australia out of any big tournament. They are the most consistent team across big tournaments and…I am sure they will be ready to compete at the next World Cup,” Gary Kirsten told Reuters.

Also, Kirsten felt the home team, England, have a solid chance of winning their first 50-over World Cup.

Since the World Cup debacle of 2015, England has been a majorly improved limited-overs side. The Three Lions have hit the most number of 300+ scores since the 2015 WC.

England Cricket Team
England team celebrate have leapfrogged India in the latest ODI rankings.

All the teams have got closer, and it really is open for any team to win the big tournaments. England are playing an aggressive and exciting brand of cricket, and it has certainly put them in a great position to contend in all tournaments,” Kirsten wrote in an email.

While talking about his countrymen, he also felt the Proteans have a strong chance to lift the trophy, on the back of AB de Villiers, Du Plessis and Quinton De Kock.

Read More  Prithvi Shaw won't play in IPL 2024 any further? Sourav Ganguly provides a jaw-dropping update

AB is a match-winner: Kirsten

Also Read: IPL 2018: Kane Williamson Hopeful of Bhuvneshwar Kumar Getting Fit for the Next Game

Gary Kirsten Backs Australia to Come Hard in 2019 World Cup
Amla, AB de Villiers and Du Plessis have been an integral part of the South African side.

Also Read: KL Rahul Not Worried About a Spot in Indian XI Post IPL

South Africa has built a team where you have a number of match-winners. AB is one of them, and he will be doing all he can to make sure he contributes as he always does,” continued the former coach of India.

Gary Kirsten, further revealed about the upcoming Academy at Pune he’s intending to be a founder of.

This is our first international academy, and we are really excited, to begin with, Pune. We will be building a state-of-the-art facility in Pune with an indoor training centre. Also, as outdoor facilities catering for all year,” concluded the RCB coach.