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Australia’s attack’s shortcomings were exposed at the Gabba yesterday in the first Test against South Africa when part-time medium-pacer Rob Quiney, on debut, was their best bowler.
The 30-year-old Victorian showed his seniors what line and length was all about, bowling six overs in three spells for just seven runs, with three maidens.
There were only 16 maiden overs bowled all day in 82.
And Quiney looked like taking wickets, which was a lot more than his far more experienced peers did all day.
Ben Hilfenhaus in his 26th Test – 0-53 off 20.
Peter Siddle in his 34th – 0-58 off 20.
James Pattinson in his seventh – 1-53 off 20.
And offie Nathan Lyon in his 15th – 1-61 off 12.
Nothing to write home about there, especially as Hilfenhaus is ranked the sixth best bowler in the world, and Siddle the seventh.
To compound the lack of wicket-taking potential, Siddle dropped a regulation caught and bowled off Hashim Amla when the South African was 74. He was unbeaten on 90 at the close.
And Siddle had the dangerous Jacques Kallis caught on 43, but on review it was a no-ball. Kallis resumes today on 80.
Two very expensive Siddle mistakes.
Having won the toss, South Africa is well in command at 2-255, but have lost JP Duminy with a torn Achilles tendon suffered after stumps running shuttle sprints in the warm down.
So the visitors will bat 10 men for the rest of the Test, minus a world-class batsman who is out for the entire tour.
The day started badly for the Australians when tall timber paceman Mitchell Starc was left out of the playing X1 – a stark raving mad decision.
Was it a selection panel decision, or just skipper Michael Clarke who is one of the five selectors anyway?
Starc would have given the attack must needed variation being a left-armer capable of extracting much more bounce out of a pretty docile Gabba track.
The chance was lost, and Clarke’s options greatly lessened.
It also begged the question, with the South Africans so comfortable at the crease, why Clarke didn’t bowl himself, or give David Warner a go.
He’s not a shabby leggie, and both Clarke and Warner would have at least given the batsmen something different to think about.
Today rain is forecast which will give the Australians some respite, to go with Duminy being missing.
But if yesterday was a forerunner to what this three-Test series is all about, it promises to be a hard slog for the baggy greens.
On yesterday’s bowling performance there’s no way the Australians could possibly get South Africa out twice to win a Test.
We’ll soon find out if the much-vaunted South African attack can bundle the Australians out twice.
That will decide the series and which country is the world number one, a status currently owned by the visitors.