Dumped by selectors from the Test side, Nathan Hauritz’s nightmare summer rolls on with more dramas in the one-day international series.
The off-spinner has been in tremendous form for NSW, winning the Australian Cricket Association’s player of the month award for December.
With the World Cup squad deadline looming next Wednesday, Hauritz had been named in Australia’s 14-man squad for the opening ODI clash with England at the MCG on Sunday.
However, he was left out of the side, having been told mid-week by selectors he would play in game two in Hobart on January 21 if selected in the squad for the remaining six ODI games.
So why was he named in the squad for the first game if he was never going to play in that match?
“Our plan had always been to play (spinner) Xavier Doherty in this game,” Cricket Australia selector Greg Chappell said on Saturday.
“We spoke to Nathan Hauritz in the week and advised him that if selected, the first game he plays in this series would be in Hobart.”
Australia have until Wednesday to name their 15-man World Cup squad for the tournament starting on the sub-continent on February 19.
While there may be room for Hauritz and Doherty in the 15-man squad for the turning pitches of Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh, it’s not set in stone.
When chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch announced the 14-man squad for Sunday’s first ODI game, he said: “We’ve included Nathan Hauritz … and Xavier Doherty.
“This gives us a chance to look at both of them prior to the World Cup.”
But as Sunday’s game is the only one before the World Cup squad deadline, it clearly gives selectors no chance to have a look at Hauritz following his non-selection in the team.
Adding to the uncertainty, David Hussey hasn’t played an ODI since August 2009 and now he has one chance on Sunday to stake a claim for a World Cup spot. Could this have been looked at earlier?
While Hussey offers plenty with his middle-order batting smarts and cagey off-spin, it’s a high-risk strategy to slot the 33-year-old Victorian into the side so late in the World Cup build-up.
As leading cricket website Cricinfo thundered on Saturday: “It’s hard to fathom that after four years of preparation, the selectors could be so undecided that one match could influence their decisions.”
In Cricket Australia’s defence, a mounting injury toll including pace bowlers Clint McKay and Ryan Harris has meant some doors are left open for World Cup spots.
Skipper Ricky Ponting’s recovery from a broken finger, which has ruled him out of the seven-match series against England, is another World Cup hurdle for Australia.
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