Australia might opt out of opening ceremony of Commonwealth Games 2022 to concentrate on India clash

Australian women’s cricket team might miss the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games 2022 in a bid to focus on their first game against India at the event. The women’s cricket team will be a part of the Commonwealth Games for the first time in the upcoming event. Shelly Nitschke, the coach of Australia, looked confident of winning their first game.

Notably, the final of the tournament will be played on August 7, 2022. Edgbaston ground in Birmingham will host all the matches. Australia is drawn alongside India, Pakistan and Barbados in group A. Australia are the favorites to win the first clash against India.

With India missing two players due to Covid-19, Australia might claim a win here. Australia’s coach Shelly Nitschke told on the eve of Commonwealth Games 2022 that her team is proud to be a part of this historic event.

“They’re all really honoured to be part of the first T20 women’s (tournament) at the Commonwealth Games. It’s got a special place. We play World Cups and Ashes and things like that, which are very important, but this is something a little bit different, to be involved in the first one. It has a lot of significance for us,” Nitschke revealed.

Given that both teams have a pretty solid squad, one could expect a cracker of a contest. India might be a little lacking but that doesn’t rule them out either. Whoever wins the gold will go down to become the first team to ever win a gold in Commonwealth Games history.

“It’s a big motivation. It’s the first one, it’s something new for us. We’re really keen to put our best foot forward and hopefully add a gold medal to the mix. It’s important and the girls are excited about it. We expect a decent crowd there on Friday against India, but in effect, our preparation stays reasonably similar to what we do in the big tournaments,” Nitschke concluded.