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While it was the suspension imposed on George Bailey because of the slow over rate that led to Australian captain missing the game against England on Friday, he could easily have been dropped for poor form.
Rather than his lack of runs, it is the mannerism of his dismissals that warrant an explanation. Some of the shots Bailey has played in his past 15 innings seem to suggest he has gone from a secure middle-order saviour to negligent stroke-maker.
Since becoming the fastest to 1000 runs for Australia in one day format over a year ago, Bailey was guaranteed the number five spot in the ODI team – he had earned it by some calm and composed innings.
At the start of the ODI series at home against England last summer, his figures read 1800 runs at an average of 51.90, with a healthy strike rate of 91.11.
After a break of six months, Bailey’s form has been wretched. In the past 15 matches, he has scored 313 runs at average of 20.26. In the majority of those matches he has batted at four and come to crease with ample of time to build an innings.
As stated earlier, the concern for Australia is perhaps not the lack of runs but the manner and the timing of Bailey’s dismissals. Against the low profile Zimbabwe, in the 15th over, Bailey backed away from just the fifth ball he received and tried an ambitious drive to be bowled for one.
Then in the UAE, after slogging Shahid Afridi for a six the ball before, Bailey attempted another overzealous swipe across the line only to top edge it. There was no reason for the shot, given there were still 23 overs, and with the field well spread out, it was an opportunity to rotate the strike. Six months ago, he was directing the middle overs perfectly.
Returning back to Australia against South Africa, Bailey top scored with a 70 but was dropped twice in space of two balls when on two. On both of those occasions he had pushed a straightforward ball back to bowler and hit a short ball straight to point – there was an element of laziness about it.
In the very next match, with Australia on the brink at 4/94 requiring a stable platform in middle order, Bailey played yet another cross-batted hoick that spooned to mid on. Australia went on to be bowled out for 170.
The last game of the bilateral series, Bailey entered the frame with only 11 runs to get. It should have been a walk in the park, but yet another ugly swipe resulted in Australia having a dramatic collapse which almost saw Robin Petereson win the game for South Africa.
While he can be forgiven for yet another such shot against England in the opening game of the tri-series as Australia attempted to chase down a bonus point, his very casual footwork led to a leg-side stumping.
For a man who played his formative years batting with Michael Bevan in Tasmania, Bailey’s shot selection as an experienced middle-order batsman and a captain have been disappointing. With Michael Clarke certain to walk into the playing XI if declared fit for the World Cup, Bailey is volunteering to be left out.
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