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The final Test against India commences in Sydney today, with the inclusion of Mitchell Starc in place of the injured Mitchell Johnson demonstrating the challenges the current summer fixture imposes on the national selection panel.
While Starc has performed well in his Big Bash League since his post-Brisbane demotion, ultimately this has involved four-over spells against batsmen looking to hit him out of the ground.
Are these adequate grounds for recalling a bowler, just weeks after a mediocre Test outing against India?
The selectors are clearly limited in opportunities to assess Test form while our domestic scene is in T20 carnival mode. Even still, it is odd to think much credence is given to BBL form when choosing our Test team.
This quandary first presented itself when Shaun Marsh undertook a pre-Boxing Day fitness test in a BBL game against the Melbourne Renegades on December 22, 2011. On that occasion, Marsh smashed 99 from just 52 balls to lead the Perth Scorchers to an emphatic victory. Strong form, no?
Unfortunately, this was followed just days later by returns of 0 and 3 against India at the MCG. Marsh then added another duck at Sydney, 11 on his hometown WACA, and 3 and 0 in Adelaide to finish the 2011-12 in devastating form. Devastating for his career, that is. Marsh did not play another Test for over two years.
By picking players for our Test side based predominantly on T20 form, the selectors are arguably short-changing everyone. Batsmen are rewarded for smashing bowlers around for 20 overs at the most. Bowlers get bonus points for taking the wickets of batsmen more intent on hitting crowd catches than building an innings.
Another worrying trend to emerge from the modern BBL summer is the ‘potential’ approach to selection, which has seen baggy greens given to players such as Glenn Maxwell. The most recent example of this is the bizarre reappearance of one Ashton Agar in the squad for the Sydney Test.
Selection gurus have spruiked Agar’s short-form value in recent weeks, with Ricky Ponting dubbing him a ‘smoky’ for the World Cup squad. His BBL figures are quite good for a spinner, with returns of 1/26, 2/22 and 1/8 in his three home games this summer.
However this is countered by figures of 1/53 and 0/105 in his most recent Shield game before the T20 break. Although he may become a genuine spinning all-rounder one day, these numbers do not demonstrate a bowler demanding Test selection.
Ultimately, BBL performances should only result in two outcomes: selection in the Australian T20 side, and big, fat IPL contracts. Most players would be very pleased with this.
For now though, let’s encourage our selectors to stay focused on Shield performances, where the attributes required for a player to succeed in Test cricket can be better assessed. Patience, strategy, mental strength and overall endurance are unlikely to become by-products of the shortest form of the game any time soon.
One can only hope the selectors set the bar a bit higher for Test selection in future summers.
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