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G’day Trevor, How the devil are you? It’s been ages.
Quite the Summer you’ve had, one moment minding your sports goods shop and the next elevated to a senior selection position for the National Cricket Team!
Good thing you remembered the password to the photocopier, or Cricket Australia may have had to follow a more rigorous or even (dare I say it) professional recruitment process.
Not that you don’t have experience, your time as selector certainly did coincide with the Test and ODI teams’ greatest periods, but then it also did coincide with a time where Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne, Adam Gilchrist, Steve and Mark Waugh, Ricky Ponting and co were all available.
In fact, as I seem to remember it, you lost the same job you were just handed back almost as soon as these players retired. It’s almost like you hadn’t thought of succession planning through that period.
Photocopier passwords eh? Gotta love ‘em.
Anyway, I’m writing to you for two main reasons and they both relate to your comments about Cameron White.
Now I know you must regret them already, after all, you could have slagged off The Bear all you liked in your last job while selling little Timmy a miniature Kaboom™ bat, but it’s just not the done thing for a National Selector.
The first reason, Trev, is that its all about leadership and respect.
I know it’s not very popular at the moment for leaders to respect others, but that’s what a good leader does. Give respect to get it in return.
When you criticise a national cricketer, it’s something the paying public (who buy their discount kookaburras off you, and pay your selectors wage) doesn’t appreciate.
The Bear is a committed club, state and (when picked) national cricketer. His last two domestic seasons have been excellent and, despite almost no chance of being picked, he continues to put in match-winning performances and keep trying.
He doesn’t have to, he could look at another field of employment or just knock around in T20 competitions globally. But he doesn’t, he is committed to Australian cricket.
These are the actions of someone who cares, someone who is dedicated to the sport that they love.
If you criticise the Bear, you are criticising all of us that love and care about the game.
The second reason, Hohnsy, is that if you are going to start slagging people off, you are going to get it in return and you may not like that.
For a bit of perspective, let’s remember that your own Test career of seven matches brought 136 runs (at 22) and 17 wickets (at 34). Your first class record included 5,210 runs (at 27) and 288 wickets (at 37).
Now, this is all very adequate, until you compare them with The Bear.
The Bear was made captain of his State at 21, averages 29 with the bat from the four Tests he has played, has five Test wickets at 68 which is fair for part-time spinners in India and one of his wickets was a certain SR Tendulkar.
On top of that, he has over 9,000 first class runs at 40 and 195 wickets at 40 again.
That may not be what you called “earth shattering”, but its bloody impressive and a damn site better than yours.
While we are picking up the criticism stick, let’s have a look at your efforts as selector since your return.
First, you dropped Peter Nevill for Cam Wade, which has reminded us why Nevill was picked in the first place. Wade was picked for his batting but had a top score of 29 against Pakistan.
Further, Wade struggles to catch balls thrown back from the deep, let alone those that beat the bat. It’s almost like he is trying to protect his gloves because they are too expensive.
I dunno, what do kids use keeping gloves for these days Trev?
Nic Maddison was another interesting pick, and by interesting I mean appalling. His top score from his last ten appearances (including BBL games) is 26. Its like you’ve wrecked the kid.
We can move onto the last ODI series and the current one.
Who is this Sam Heazlett kid? Sure, he might have potential, but maybe reward some local middle-order batsmen instead? You know, like someone that won Domestic Player of the Year?
There’s an old story about glass houses Trev, and it doesn’t involve the old basketball stadium in Melbourne. Look it up.
In summary Trev, don’t poke the Bear.
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