Aaron Finch and Kane Williamson under par with the bat in recent matches. Although the Australians took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the one-day series the neighbours are contesting in Cairns on Thursday, their skipper issue looks to be more pronounced.
Finch made a second ball duck in the 113-run victory, the fifth time out of 13 one-day innings this year that he has failed to score a run.
With Australia's T20 World Cup title defence getting underway against the Blacks Caps in Sydney on Oct. 22, a run drought for one of their opening batters must be a concern for the tournament hosts.
Spinner Adam Zampa, who took a maiden ODI five-wicket haul in Thursday's victory, said there were mitigating factors. "It's tough (but) we're backing him to get through it," he told reporters. "Obviously, we have the bigger goal in mind and that's to win trophies.