Victorian warhorse Cameron White staked a strong claim for inclusion in the World Cup with a cool-headed 41 not out to steer Australia to a nail-biting two-wicket win with a ball to spare over South Africa at Stadium Australia last night to clinch the Twenty20 series 2-1.
Chasing a gettable 146, the 31-year-old White watched skipper Aaron Finch (33), Shane Watson (5), Glenn Maxwell (23), and James Faulkner (9) find fieldsmen with the deadly accuracy of a darts champions hitting the triple 20.
Ben Dunk (13), and Pat Cummins (3) were caught and bowled, while Nic Maddison (4) chopped on, but White soldiered on.
His 41 took only 31 deliveries with four fours,and a six, following a stellar Matador BBQs domestic One-Day Cup with two tons and two 50s to finish fourth in the national averages.
The forgotten Usman Khawaja topped the list with 523 runs at 74.71, Ben Dunk 403 at 67.16, including a double hundred, Chris Hartley 403 at 57.57, and White with 354 at 59.00
White has been a top performer since he debuted for the Vics in 2000 to chalk up four Tests, 89 ODIs, and 48 Twenty20s in his career.
He started out as a teenage leg-spinning batsman, but in the interim his leggies have been lost in the telling, that has improved his batting.
He hasn’t been included in the squad for the first two ODIs against South Africa at the WACA on Friday and Sunday, but there are three more games in Canberra, the MCG, and SCG where White should be given a guernsey.
So too Faulkner, the man of the Twenty20 series, and Mitchell Starc, both left out of the two WACA games to concentrate on Shield games in the lead-up to the first Test against India at the Gabba.
The first-up ODI squad is Michael Clarke (capt), George Bailey (vc), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Marsh, Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Matthew Wade, David Warner, and Watson.
Resurrected keeper Wade has Hartley breathing down his neck, as well as Dunk who was superb behind the stumps in the Twenty20 series, even though he didn’t score as many runs as his selection warranted.
Glenn Maxwell?
It’s time national selection chairman Rod Marsh had a meaningful chat with this very talented all-rounder.
There have been far too many times when Maxwell has tried to live up to his “Big Show” tag, instead of being a team man.
Last night was yet another example of his selfish attitude to representing his country.
There are dozens of first class cricketers in Australian who would give their right arm to play for their country in any format, and would never ever abuse the honour, nor the privilege.
Quite often Maxwell plays for himself and his ego, as he did last night.
But Australia can’t afford to leave his genuine talent in the shed, or the domestic scene, he has so much to offer in every department.
Warner, Finch, Watson, Clarke, Smith, White, and Maxwell are capable of leading Australia to World Cup success if they bat anywhere near their capabilities.
But they can’t carry an irresponsible Maxwell, he has to pull his weight by reigning in his show-boating.
And then winning the World Cup will be a very valid prediction.
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