"I guess from my point of view - for such a young side and inexperienced line-up - it'd be great if we could play some more cricket before the T20 World Cup."
Australia's conquerors in last year's T20 World Cup, England, play more than double the number of matches next year, with seven internationals before the tournament.
Former champions Pakistan play five, while powerhouse South Africa play six.
Media scrutiny in the lead-up to the opening T20 in Cape Town today, has centred on the current status and worth of international cricket's shortest fixtures.
Critics argue that the widespread approach of teams to rest star players from T20 matches impacts on the credibility of the contests.
Australian vice-captain Shane Watson, one of the few players from either team on tour playing all three formats, says he understands why big names are often absent, but admits it's not a good result for the game.
"It's looking like a number of players who were in Twenty20 international cricket have moved that aside a little bit to try and stay fresh enough to play all year around in one-dayers and test matches as well," Watson said.
"It seems that's the way the trend is going and, in a way, it's a bit disappointing as well.
"Even for South Africa, for example Jacques Kallis, we've seen consistently is one of the most consistent Twenty20 batsmen in the world and obviously won't be playing along with the likes of Dale Steyn, Mark Boucher and Albie Morkel.
"It certainly changes the dynamics of our team and I'm sure it does with South Africa as well."
- AAP
