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Ed Cowan is the best batman in Australia, daylight comes second, and third comes Michael Clarke.
Alright, so that is painfully wrong, but not as painfully wrong as the chorus of voices saying Ed Cowan is the worst bat in the Aussie top six and that he should be cut from the side.
Ed Cowan had an awful Test, there is no doubt about that. He played some uncharacteristically rash shots and threw his wicket away. But to drop him after one poor Test is extremely misguided, especially considering the recent performances of the Aussie side. Here’s some numbers which make a case for Ed.
Here are the statistics for Ed Cowan, Shane Watson and Phil Hughes over the last 12 months. Hughes has played 8 Tests and averaged 32.92 with no centuries. Cowan has played 11 Tests and averaged 32.15 with one century. Shane Watson has played 7 Tests and averaged 23.92 with zero centuries.
And Cowan is the problem?
Fact of the matter is that Ed is being unfairly scapegoated by ill-informed cricket fans who think one game is enough to either destroy or deify a player. He has a recent record much stronger than Watson’s and only a hair behind Hughes. He has the runs on the board.
On the tour of India, Cowan showed the mettle and determination, which was lacking in our glass top six. Cowan averaged 33. 12 – Hughes and Watson averaged under 20 (18.37 and 16.5 respectively). How on Earth can Cowan’s head be number one on the chopping block when these two are throwing up numbers like that? It’s ludicrous.
Hughes and Watson should not go, as not everyone is a part of the ‘sack him!’ brigade, who neither have the patience nor the understanding of sport to realise that one good or one bad game isn’t enough to drop or promote a player. Even though Ed is under pressure for the second Test, to drop him from the Test side for Usman Khawaja, who I am a fan of but whose Test and recent domestic record is extremely uninspiring, is incredibly premature and a very poor decision.
Ed should open with Rogers, with Watson or Hughes at three. Shane Watson has to realise the team is more important than him and that not every decision he is involved in is worth review and that if the best position for him to play is lower in the order, then so be it. If it wasn’t for his bowling, he wouldn’t be in the side, considering the record he has had over the past year and his record for converting starts into century.
So we need to stay steady with Eddy. He may be unfashionable, but all those calling for his head are incredibly ill-informed. After his strong tour of India, he deserves a chance to redeem himself.
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