Zampa’s praise for Australia’s white-ball skipper

Adam Zampa says his ascension to Australia's first-choice white-ball spinner is in part to the leadership of national limited-overs captain Aaron Finch.

Zampa says Finch's encouraging leadership style has given him the freedom to trust his instincts in the middle, which has seen him climb to fourth on the ICC men's T20 bowling rankings and as high as second in October 2019.

"Being led well as a leg-spinner is everything," Zampa told SEN today. 

"You can be bowling the absolute house down in the nets and feel like you're bowling well in the game but if you've got a leader who is controlling, wants you to bowl a certain way every single ball every single time, it's just added pressure on you. 

"With Finchy in particular, he's very communicative when I'll be bowling each game and who he wants me to bowl to but once I get out there he's just 'go with your gut, mate'. 

"It works really, me and Finchy together."

No Australian has taken more than Zampa's 67 wickets in the white-ball formats in the past two years under Finch's captaincy. 

In that period, he was dropped from Australia's one-day team during the 50-over World Cup for off-spinner Nathan Lyon but has since forced his way back into the side to be the premier slow bowler in the country.

He combination with Ashton Agar, Australia's reigning men's T20 player, is a big reason why Australia is the No.2 T20 team in the world.  

Speaking after Zampa claimed 4-54 against India at the SCG last November, Finch said Zampa is at the top of his game.  

"He's been fantastic for a long time now as our No.1 spinner in the white-ball formats," Finch told cricket.com.au. 

"Getting good players out under pressure is what it's all about.  

"You have to take wickets to win games and he certainly did that."

Zampa and Agar are set to reunite in New Zealand for the five-match T20 tour after the left-armer missed the KFC BBL with finger and calf injuries.

While the campaign will be used as a fact-finding mission without the Test stars ahead of the T20 World Cup later this year in India, Zampa says the primary goal is to beat the Black Caps.

"As soon as you start worrying about yourself and worrying whether you're going to be on (the T20 World Cup tour) it's not the greatest of attitudes to have," Zampa said. 

"I see myself on that tour. I see myself as a massive leader in this side too, so I'm going to try and do everything possible to try and get us playing the best cricket possible so that we can have success at the tournament and not just be there."

Qantas T20I tour of New Zealand 2021

Australia squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Daniel Sams, Tanveer Sangha, D'Arcy Short, Marcus Stoinis, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.

New Zealand squad: TBC

1st T20: February 22, Hagley Oval, Christchurch, 5pm AEDT

2nd T20: February 25, University of Otago Oval, Dunedin, 12noon AEDT

3rd T20: March 03, Sky Stadium, Wellington, 5pm AEDT

4th T20: March 05, Eden Park, Auckland, 5pm AEDT

5th T20: March 07, Bay Oval, Tauranga, 12noon AEDT

All matches will be shown live in Australia on Fox Cricket and Kayo