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It’s funny that on the eve of the Melbourne Cup, Cricket Australia was looking for a stayer to replace Shane Watson for the first Test against South Africa starting in Brisbane from Friday.
The form guide is creased and torn and the tarot cards have that pre-loved dog-eared look about them, but in the end Victorian opener Rob Quiney was first past the post.
If the selection panel had chosen someone who had only performed in three or four Sheffield Shield games this year they would’ve been accused of being short-sighted and cheapening the value of the baggy green cap.
Instead, they’ve picked someone on the merits of their performances against the red ball over the last 12-18 months, who might not have performed consistently this year. We wait today for the unjustified cries of incompetence.
Unfortunately no-one fitted into both categories so Quiney, the reigning domestic player of the year, is the winner of the race that stops the nation.
He topped the Sheffield Shield scorers list last season with 938 runs at an average of 49.36 and in the 2010/11 campaign the Victorian was the second highest scorer with 724 runs at average of 42.58.
That means, for the last two years, at 30, Quiney has been the best batsman outside of the Test team in Australia.
The downside is that in five innings so far in the 2012/13 campaign Quiney has scored just 68 runs.
His saving grace, however, has been 119 against Queensland and 53 against Tasmania in the domestic one day competition. That was followed up by a well made 85 against South Africa for Australia A at the SCG over the weekend.
So, while his recent shield form might not have screamed “pick me”, his form in all competitions was still solid.
The other names mentioned in the selection debate had a similar problem.
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting is the leading run-scorer in the competition, but the next five were sub-par last season.
Callum Ferguson, Alex Doolan, Mark Cosgrove, Usman Khawaja and Moises Henriques all averaged 34 or below last season.
The Cup is the toughest race to pick, unless your daily sporting intake includes a betting slip and copious amounts of Sky Racing, Sky Racing World or TVN.
Well, last night chairman of selectors John Inverarity had to take a punt on who would replace Watson (calf).
There was no mention of how Ricky Ponting’s hamstring was faring.
Quiney’s call-up was an important part of clarifying what type of form is important and relevant to the selection panel.
Doolan scored an unbeaten 161 against the Proteas at the SCG for Australia A, and is averaging 82.5 in the Sheffield Shield this year for Tasmania, but only averaged 29.64 last season.
Quiney made a half century, but his Sheffield Shield form this season has been more miss than hit.
Still, sustained efforts over the last 12-24 months matter more than Doolan’s recent eye-catching form line.
He should slot straight into Watson’s position at first drop as well.
The all-rounder will more than likely be back for the second test, so it would be nice to see how Quiney handles the pressure of batting at the top of the Australian order before probably being shipped back to state cricket.
Then again they could just play Watson as a batsman, and while that would be absolute lunacy, it would fit the narrative of his career nicely.
>> Listen to Rob Quiney’s reaction to being called-up for Australia.
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