Aussies set lofty goals for summer ahead

A bumper summer of cricket looms for the Australian cricket team, who will host South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan and Sri Lanka between now and the end of February.

Beyond that, a Test tour of India and the chance to win the Champions Trophy on English soil loom.

With so much to play for, cricket.com.au asked the Australian players to outline their own personal goals for the weeks and months ahead:

Nathan Lyon

"I still want to play all 3 formats for Australia, I want to be the number one spinner in all areas. I've got a bit of work to do here and there.

"As a team I would love to see us win the Ashes out here 5-nil again, win the Champions Trophy and obviously (retain) the World Cup as well. And by that time (2019) I think the Ashes will be back in England and then I reckon the big tick for Australia would we to win the Ashes over there. To win an Ashes in England would be quite satisfying."

Darren Lehmann

"We try to win every game we play and every series, you have setbacks along the way, like Sri Lanka, and you get back on the horse and try and rectify that, that’s all you can do.

"So the big thing for us is making sure the players are improving off-field as players and growing as people, we think if we get their life balance right they’ll play good cricket for us. And entertain people, that’s the big thing we want, them to entertain the public day in, day out.

"We understand we’re not going to be able to come off all the time the way we play, but more often than not people leave the ground with a sense of satisfaction, they've watched the Australian cricket team have a 100 per cent, red-hot go."

Pat Cummins

"My long term goals are still to play a lot of Test cricket and obviously to get back playing first-class cricket is probably the short-term goal… and a couple of one-dayers this summer.

"There's so much cricket now that there's always teams I want to make everywhere, but at the moment it’s just about getting comfortable in my body and finding form and building up slowly and obviously one day, I’d love to be out there in the Baggy Green again."

Mitchell Marsh

"My number one goal is to stay in the Test team. Obviously I’d like to score a few more runs when I get an opportunity to bat for a long period of time. I just love playing Test cricket for my country and wearing a Baggy Green so I want to do that for as long as I can.

"I want to get a Test hundred and hopefully it’s in a winning Test match and you can sing the song, so I'm sure I’ll get there, I felt really good in Sri Lanka even though I wasn’t able to get a big score on the board, but I feel like I'm close and I'm working every day to get there, so I'm sure it'll come."

Peter Nevill

"Winning the Test series against South Africa, there's nothing in the forefront of my mind as much as that."

Adam Voges

"We’ve lost our No.1 Test ranking and I think everyone is desperate to get that back.

"We obviously had a really tough tour of Sri Lanka but I think on the back of how successful we were last summer, that playing at home in our own conditions we should have some real confidence against two extremely good teams.

"That’s what makes this summer so exciting, it’s going to be a really high level of cricket and we’re going to have to play exceptionally well to win and I think we should be confident of doing that."

Aaron Finch

 "Definitely to get in the Test side. (I want to) perform well, keep improving, win games for Australia, win series, perform well in series and perform well in big games.

"But ultimately it’s to play Test cricket. Whether that happens is another thing but I think I'm comfortable where my game is at the moment, I'm comfortable that if I got the opportunity I would perform well.

"I think I've taken a lot of pressure off myself just by not letting that be a burden, not trying so hard to do it that you actually forget what you're doing out in the middle. I'm relaxed with my game and my life and on and off the field I'm very comfortable, so I think that’s a great headspace for me to be in personally."

Peter Siddle

"Trying to get back into the Test team, be a part of the Tests sometime this summer, whether its against South Africa or Pakistan.

"It’s just about getting back, try and get back in the team and then playing some consistent cricket and I think that’s what I'm looking forward to."

Usman Khawaja

"I would like to get back to being the No.1 Test nation. That’d be a goal I think that all of us would like to achieve. I'm not a massive goal setter, I just like to take it one game at a time, excuse the cliché but that’s how it is."

Josh Hazlewood

"I'd like to take it one game at a time as I have from the start and really focus on the game that I'm playing. I've never looked too far ahead really, because I think things can catch up with you a little bit, but obviously once I get to that first Test hopefully this summer I'll concentrate solely on that and then we'll take it from there."

James Faulkner

"Big goal looking forward would be, one to make the Champions Trophy squad and win that. I know there's a lot of other players in the group really keen on winning that.

"And just for me my number one goal is to try and obviously play as many games as I can (and) contribute in the games I play, there's no point playing if I'm not contributing."

Adam Zampa

"The obvious one is Test cricket. I would love to win a Shield with South Australia. We came close last year in all forms. I've played professional cricket for three or four years now and haven’t got any silverware so just hopefully there's some of that in the near future.

"It would be nice to get some Shield cricket under my belt. There's been so much white-ball cricket this year and luckily I've been in all those squads, but it would be nice to get Shield under the belt."

Matthew Wade

"I want to really lock down my spot. I played every game in one-day cricket last year and I've started this year pretty well, so obviously to lock down a spot in one-day cricket and I'm still very hopeful that I can get another chance in the Test arena.

"I feel like my game now is better than it’s ever been, even than when I was playing for Australia in Test cricket, so if I get another opportunity somewhere down the track that would be fantastic."

Shaun Marsh

"For me it’s just not looking too far ahead, just taking it one game at a time and thoroughly enjoying playing for Australia at the moment. I've got to keep working hard and keep making every post a winner. I want to get an opportunity to go there and bat."

John Hastings

"I desperately want to get back in the Test side, whether or not that happens who knows, but that’s something high on my agenda. I've worked really hard over the last five months to get fit and strong and hopefully that carries me through into the summer.

"If I can crack back into that Test side early on into the summer and then with one eye on the Indian series as well, that would be huge. And I want to just keep playing some good white-ball cricket for Australia."

Glenn Maxwell

"My main goal is to obviously get back in the Test squad and really nail it down. It's been a format that I've felt really good in over the last two years.

"After my last Shield season where I felt like I hit the ball really well consistently, throughout the year it wasn’t my form in red-ball or pink-ball cricket that was patchy, it was just quite solid the whole way through."

Travis Head

"Hopefully to play cricket for Australia, to keep myself in the one-day team. I felt really comfortable in Sri Lanka. The test now comes to get runs and just stand up, that’s probably the hardest part with so many good players breathing down your neck.

"Once you're in, it’s probably harder to stay in there than it is to get there."

Scott Boland

"I think if I can string a few more games together, I can hold myself in good stead going forward in the short form of the game, and just go back to Victoria and hopefully take some more wickets and we can really press to win another Sheffield Shield. That would be pretty special."

International cricket is more affordable than ever this summer, with adult tickets from $30, kids from $10 and family packages from $65 across every day of international cricket. Price for purchase at match. Transaction fee from $6.95 applies to online and other purchases. For more information and to purchase tickets, click here.