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Jackson Bird has made a very wise choice. Unlike many fellow Aussie cricketers who shun county cricket in favour of either rest or lucrative T20 contracts, Bird has signed a three-month contract with Hampshire next year.
That stint will be crucial for Bird if he is to earn a spot in Australia’s Ashes squad for the tour of England.
On first glance, Bird appears tailor made for English conditions – a tall, accurate swing bowler capable of moving the ball off the seam.
The Tasmanian made his name by dismantling Sheffield Shield batting line-ups during an era in which his home ground Bellerive Oval sported a seaming deck not dissimilar to those often seen in England.
Yet he has laboured in the foreign conditions of the United Kingdom, both during last year’s Ashes tour and on a previous tour with Australia A. Across those two tours, he returned 15 wickets at an average of 40 from six first-class matches.
The problem? His inability to gain consistent swing with the Dukes cricket ball used in England.
It was noted during the Australia A tour of England in 2012 that he did not arc the Dukes ball through the air in the same dangerous manner he achieves with the more familiar Kookaburra. This was again evident in England last year amid a hugely disappointing tour for the Australians.
Bird had to wait until the fourth Test of the Ashes, with Australia already 2-0 down, before being given an opportunity. In that match at Chester-le-Street, Bird was tidy, as he always is, but lacked penetration due to the minimal swing he earned.
The 27-year-old, who is now on the comeback from his second back injury in the space of 12 months, simply must swerve the ball if he is to wedge his way back into the Australian Test line-up.
Australian coach Darren Lehmann has made it clear that he is most interested in paceman who can deliver the ball at 140-plus kilometres per hour. Lehmann sees unsettling pace as crucial to his ultra-aggressive strategy of using Australia’s fast bowlers in brief, venomous bursts.
Bird doesn’t fit this mould. While he can nudge the speed gun to 140 kilometres, he is patently more comfortable operating in the mid-130s.
This is a distinct disadvantage in the Lehmann era. The Aussie selectors may, however, make an exception for a genuine swing bowler capable of acting as a foil for the blood-thirsty offerings of the likes of Mitchell Johnson.
Such a selection appears most likely on English surfaces, which were lifeless during the last Ashes and unlikely to be any quicker next year given the threat posed to the home batsmen by Johnson.
On slower decks offering a bit of seam, Bird could come into the frame. The Ashes could be his first opportunity to get back into the Test team as, at this point, it seems unlikely he will feature in this summer’s four-Test series against India.
On hard home decks against the pace-shy Indian batting line-up, Australia will probably select their most intimidating fast men.
This makes Bird’s county move a sage one. He has never played in the county championship, although he was set to play for Northants this past English summer before he re-injured his back.
Bird will hope that a prolific Australian summer, followed by a successful stint at Hampshire, will propel him back into the Australian Test team.