Australia’s aggressive batting strategy of playing their ‘natural game’ was long considered a factor in their frequent Test collapses. This year, however, they have scored slower in Tests than any time this millennium.
Among the top-six ranked teams in Test cricket, Australia have been comfortably the slowest scoring side this year, going at just 3.09 runs per over.
To highlight just how sluggish that is, their average strike rate over the previous 15 years was 3.60rpo. The last time they scored as slowly as this year was back in 1999, when batting conservatively was the dominant strategy.
It was in 2000 that Australia began to create a new batting paradigm, as they backed their batsmen to take on the bowlers and score at a rapid pace.
After maintaining rates of 3.10rpo, 2.88rpo and 3.08rpo in the years of 1997, 1998 and 1999 respectively, Steve Waugh’s side upped the ante, scoring at 3.42rpo, 3.77rpo, 3.99rpo and then an amazing 4.09rpo across the years of 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003, respectively.
During this period, now-coach Darren Lehmann played the majority of his 27 Tests, so it makes sense that Lehmann has been supportive of his batsmen playing their shots.
This year though, the team have clearly adopted a more patient approach to batting, in an apparent attempt to become more consistent.
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Even cavalier opener David Warner has reined himself in, scoring at a strike rate of 68 this year, which is dawdling compared to his strike rate of 83 across the previous three years. Steve Smith has led by example, reducing his strike rate to 50 in 2017, compared to 60 over the previous three years, as he’s attempted to remove risk from his game.
The skipper has the ability to decimate bowling attacks but this year has seemed more preoccupied with blunting them. In the Ashes opener at Brisbane, he batted for a monstrous 512 minutes in crawling to 141 not out. Australia scored at a meagre 2.8rpo at the Gabba, a venue where they so often have cantered along over the past 20 years.
Then at Adelaide, another ground where Australia have traditionally batted with great aggression, they once more scored at just 2.8rpo. Of course, that didn’t stop them from being rolled for 138 in the second dig, the exact kind of collapse that has plagued them for some time now.
But it does appear as though the Aussies are finally trading bravado for gumption with the blade. When they need to, they are still well capable of taking on the opposition bowlers. What’s different is that the batsman seem choosier as to when they launch such an assault.
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It’s too early to draw any conclusions about this change of tack. Perhaps it’s just a coincidence and there is no coordinated effort to bat more responsibly. It is encouraging, though, to see batsmen in baggy green placing a higher price on their wicket after too many years of cavalier batting.
Australia simply do not have the wealth of talent required to consistently blast opposition attacks the way the team of the early-to-mid 2000s did.
Their current bowling attack is outstanding but, if they are to become an elite Test team, Australia’s batting line-up must find greater consistency. The go-slow approach to batting they’ve exhibited this year can surely only help achieve that goal.
Australia’s team batting strike rates by calendar year
2017 – 3.09rpo
2016 – 3.33rpo
2015 – 3.93rpo
2014 – 3.75rpo
2013 – 3.25rpo
2012 – 3.57rpo
2011 – 3.27rpo
2010 – 3.27rpo
2009 – 3.50rpo
2008 – 3.31rpo
2007 – 3.90rpo
2006 – 3.64rpo
2005 – 3.71rpo
2004 – 3.55rpo
2003 – 4.08rpo
2002 – 3.99rpo
2001 – 3.77rpo
2000 – 3.42rpo
1999 – 3.08rpo
1998 – 2.88rpo
1997 – 3.10rpo
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