Opening batsman Aaron Finch said Australia little to lose when they take on England in a five-match ODI series this week.

Finch made 78 as Australia beat Sussex by 57 runs in their tour opener at Hove, one of two warm-up matches ahead of the five-match clash that begins at the Oval on Wednesday.

The Sussex match was Australia’s first since the ball-tampering controversy in South Africa earlier in the year. Former Australia captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner received year-long bans for their roles in the Cape Town Test saga, while Cameron Bancroft – who applied sandpaper to the ball – was suspended for nine months.

Apart from the unavailable Smith and Warner, Australia are without injured fast-bowling trio of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood.

“There’s a lot of excitement around, any time you bring young guys into the squad for their first or second tour, it brings a lot of energy around the group,” Finch said on Friday ahead of their warm-up match against Middlesex on Saturday.

Finch, named vice-captain in the absence of Warner, said inclusion of talented bowlers like Jhye Richardson and Kane Richardson will help Australia ahead of the 2019 World Cup in England.

“Our one-day cricket hadn’t been that great over the last 18 months to two years, so who knows, if we give these young guys a few opportunities, they can do some wonderful things,” he explained.