You are then left with one position to play with, and who you pick there depends again on the conditions and the opposition, but also on who else you have picked. Do you want more batting or more bowling? Do you want more spin or more pace? Can the ability of this last player allow you to adjust who you pick as the 4 bowlers (or as the wicket keeper)?

If you want to pick both Watson and Symonds, it seems to me that you have to be saying that one of them is either in the best 5 batsmen or best 4 bowlers. I just do not see that you can say that. While I think you can make a case for picking either one of them (Symonds – on last season’s form a good test batsman at 6, with fielding and handy bowling a bonus; Watson – good enough to contribute as 4th seamer in a 4 seam 1 spin attack, or as 3rd seamer in a 3 seam, 2 spin attack, and has clear ability as a batsman, even if he is yet to make much of it), picking both while still picking 4 specialist bowlers leaves you dangerously short of batting. And, on the flip side, if as in Brisbane you pick them and only 3 bowlers, your bowling is at risk of ending up being light on.

I’m also always puzzled when people want to fiddle with a strength in a sporting team in order to try to address a weakness (as in shifting Hussey from 4 to open). I wouldn’t say you should never do it, because sometimes you have no alternatives and sometimes people are ready to take on bigger responsibilities. However, it seems to me that if someone has been making a pile of runs against all comers in one of the key batting positions, you should be very reluctant to move him from there. It’s not like Rogers (or even Marsh) isn’t well worth a go when Hayden goes or is pushed.

For the sake of the man, help him. After all, we are only playing the rag tag New Zealand team that dont even approach Shield standard.

Put the man first and the game second!!!