Australia may have gotten their T20 World Cup campaign off to a winning start, but it was anything but convincing.
The bowling performance was strong, but even that leaked far too many runs as old issues flared up for the Australians.
For so long in the shortest form of the game, Australia have struggled in two particular areas, being their batting in the middle overs, and their bowling at the death.
Both of those issues flared up again in the tournament opener on a pitch which, while seemingly flat, was deceptively tricky to bat on, and even more so to make a start on.
A low-scoring result was what followed against South Africa, and while maybe that shouldn’t be a surprise to anyone, concerns for the rest of the tournament arise from the victory for Justin Langer’s side.
There is no question they will need to be far better if they wish to compete with teams like England, who walloped the West Indies overnight, or India, who come in as the red-hot tournament favourites in conditions which should suit them down to the ground.
Despite reducing South Africa to 3 for 23 off 4.1 overs, 4 for 46 off 8 overs and eventually all the way to 7 for 83 in the 15th over, they somehow still managed to end up on 118.
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Now, if Australia had of been offered a chase of 118 before the match started, they would have taken it every day of the week, but that wasn’t what they should have been chasing given their excellent start with the ball in hand.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing though, and given how tricky the pitch was to bat one, 120 almost seemed like a par score by the time it was all said and done, although it’s hard to say Australia were at the top of their game.
It was the inconsistency of closing out their 20 overs with the ball which was of most concern, while Mitchell Starc also was far short of his best.
Make no mistake about it, the team will be better for the run given many haven't played high level, elite cricket for some time, but the fact Starc consistently seemed to be bowling on the wrong length is a cause for concern for Langer and his coaching staff.
For reference, Starc went at eight runs per over. The only other bowler to go for six or more was Glenn Maxwell who took 1 for 24 from his four, but also was tasked with bowling during the powerplay.
Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins both bowled excellently though, and it must be noted their input and influence over the game sets them in excellent stead for the remainder of the tournament.
It became evident early in the piece how tricky the conditions were as Australia's batting faltered and stuttered through the chase against the excellent opening bowling of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje, before the spin duo of Keshav Maharaj and Tazraiz Shamsi took over.
While the Proteas' bowling attack is strong, it's not top of the tree at this World Cup no matter which way you spin it, and if Australia struggled to chase down 118 against that attack, there are serious concerns and questions for the remainder of the tournament.
Aaron Finch looked all at sea during his five-ball duck, and while David Warner finally looked to find a little bit of form, he too was dismissed before long for just 14 from 15 balls.
Josh Inglis continues to wait in the wings for an opportunity, and one would suspect it may come before long.
Mitchell Marsh, who has been in excellent form, could only make 11, while Glenn Maxwell was on a mission to rescue the innings alongside Steve Smith from a perilous position of 3 for 38 from almost eight overs.
Their partnership of 42 from seven overs brought Australia back into the contest before Smith departed for 35 from 34 balls.
It was what Maxwell followed it up with though that should set alarm bells ringing, bowled as he attempted a reverse sweep right when Australia most couldn't afford another wicket.
Marcus Stoinnis and Matthew Wade ended up carrying Australia home with just two balls to spare, but the Aussies made it look a lot harder than it should have been to pick up a win in their opening match.
Simply put, with matches to come against the West Indies and England, before any potential semi-final or final against India, they will have to be better if they want to reverse what is a horrid record in the shortest format of the game's showpiece event.
