Australia, England Eye ICC World Twenty20 2014 Preparation

Hobart: ICC World Twenty20 2010 champion England will begin its preparation for the 2014 edition in Bangladesh with a three-match series against Australia from 29 January in Hobart.

England, currently ranked sixth on the Reliance ICC T20I Team Rankings Table with 112 ratings points, will battle eighth-ranked Australia on 102 ratings points with one eye on the ICC World Twenty20 in Bangladesh, just 46 days away.

Should England win the series it has the chance to move up the table, however a series loss for Australia will not lead to a change in the side's ranking.

If England wins all three matches in the series, it will move up a place to fifth with a gain of five ratings points to finish on 117. A 2-1 series result in favour of Stuart Broad's side will see the side retain its number six spot but gain one ratings points to 113.  This would put the side on par with West Indies, but Darren Sammy's side would be ranked ahead when ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point,

For Australia to move up the table it needs to win all three matches in the series. If Australia wins all three matches, it will swap positions with England. Australia will move up two places to sixth with a jump of eight ratings points to end on 110, whereas England will drop to eighth with a loss of seven to finish on 105.

If Australia wins the series by any other margin there will be no movement in the table.

Australia and England's power-packed openers Aaron Finch and Alex Hales will be the top draw in the Twenty20 International series between the two sides.

Hales, ranked number-one in the world in the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for T20I batsmen, leads the way for his side, while Finch in eighth place is the only other batsman in the top 10 featuring in the series.

Cameron White has not played for Australia in any format since the World T20 in Sri Lanka in 2012, so this series is an opportunity for him to re-establish himself as an international cricketer. He may join Aaron Finch at the top of the order.

Jade Dernbach in seventh position is the only bowler in the top 10 of the Reliance ICC Player Ranking for T20I bowlers featuring in the series.

Meanwhile, England are plenty of all-round options in England's side, which means they could bat very deep depending on how the selectors balance the team.

Teams from:

Australia: George Bailey (Capt.), Matthew Wade (wk), Cameron White, Aaron Finch, Dan Christian, Chris Lynn, Glenn Maxwell, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Ben Cutting, James Faulkner, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, James Muirhead and Mitcell Starc

England: Stuart Broad (Capt.), Michael Lumb, Alex Hales, Eoin Morgan, Ravi Bopara, Luke Wright, Tim Bresnan, Danny Briggs, Jos Buttler (wk), Jade Dernbach, Chris Jordan, Boyd Rankin, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, James Tredwell

Pitch and conditions
The Hobart pitch should be good for batting. The forecast for Wednesday in Hobart is for a maximum temperate of 22-23^oC.

Stats and trivia

• The only Twenty20 international played at Bellerive Oval four years ago when Australia beat West Indies.
• Australia lost all three of their home T20s last summer; their last win at home came over India in February 2012.

Match facts
Wednesday January 29, 2014, (day/night)
Start time 1935 local (0835 GMT)