Among all the doom and gloom of the Ashes humiliation, the Australia A side gave some very good performances in their subcontinent sojourn.
They managed to win the two Test series 1-0, while were just pipped in the final of the tri-series by India A, having won all four league matches convincingly.
This is a time of Ashes gloom, however this is also a very exciting time. A new era is opening up for Aussie cricket with Steve Smith at the helm.
This is the final leg of the transition that started in 2007 with the retirements of a number of greats, and the phase has to be guided through carefully.
It is with this background that the Sheffield Shield is going to be much more important this year than it has in the recent years.
The tour of Bangladesh is the first stop. Bowling-wise, the team is in pretty good shape, with lot of fast bowling options present. The performances of Ashton Agar and Adam Zampa on the A tour were also encouraging.
It is the batting that will undergo a major revamp, but there are some good options coming through.
Just to illustrate I have picked two teams.
Team 1
David Warner
Usman Khawaja
Joe Burns
Steve Smith
Callum Ferguson
Mitch Marsh
Peter Nevill
Four bowlers
Team 2
Cameron Bancroft
Jordan Silk
Ryan Carters
Peter Handscomb
Chris Lynn
Nic Maddinson
Matthew Wade
Four bowlers
Young batsmen like Travis Head, Kurtis Patterson and the freaky Glenn Maxwell also cross the mind but they are a few good shield seasons away from making the Test team. Thus there are 14 options for seven batting spots.
Given Warner, Smith and Mitch Marsh are part of the current squad, they should be the backbone of the new team. Khawaja and Burns, who have already donned a baggy green, are the obvious options to come in.
That leaves one spot open, and while I have a feeling Adam Voges or Shaun Marsh might get the nod for a bit of experience, I would go in with Ferguson.
Maybe, just maybe, Ed Cowan also deserves a chance again based on his recent form, while Wade could be played as an out-and-out batsman.
Whatever team is put out against Bangladesh, it is going to be one hell of a challenge for skipper Steve. However if this last transition leg is well managed, given the potency of the bowling, it may just see the baggy green back at the top of world cricket.
Baggy_Green
Roar Pro
That is the thing to watch for me too..who opens Burns or Khawaja OR both play in the mids and a new opener is brought in..in india , with the A team khawaja actually opened with Banc .. may be thats some pointer What we also desperately need is a Michael Hussey at 6..Neville has shown some grit in this series but there has been no #6 batsman who has stood up and resisted - well not that many have in this seies :)
Bearfax
Guest
Would you be prepared to do my tax return next year Don. I need the extra cash.
Don Freo
Guest
I don't know what you think is fiddled. Just explaining how quickly a young career can improve an average.
Bearfax
Guest
O Don. Fiddling the figures again. A century is a century is a century. You cant add not out scores from other innings otherwise you would have to do it with all batsmen. There were several not out scores for instance with young Maddinson one or two close to centuries. Nope. No go Don. Fiddling the figures..sure you werent an accountant...or worse, a solicitor.
Don Freo
Guest
Not 68 Shield innings. 68 FC innings. Just to give you an idea, he scored 239...in the Shield final...dismissed just once. This is a 22 yo under finals pressure. That innings improves his average over 68 innings by almost 4. Take out all his little tour games as a kid that diluted his early average, and put these recent innings together with his 40s and his 50 from last season, he'll probably average over 50 by the end of this season. The maths lesson endeth.
Bearfax
Guest
He's already played 68 innings Don...not that far from 100. In fact if he plays each shield match this year, he will have played almost 90 innings by March 2016. Lets see what he can do to boost his figures by then
Don Freo
Guest
Not much ground to make up at all. If he had played 100 innings and had an average of 29 he'd have ground to make up. The few innings players play early can easily be corrected. Anyone who dismisses a batsman on the basis of average at the fledgling stages of a career just doesn't get it. Bradman and Viv both struggled early. You and Ruminate can choose to dismiss Harris' abilty and his achievements but that only really makes a comment about you, not Harris. He actually has that abilty. That's why he is playing at the level he is.
Bearfax
Guest
By the way Don. Harris scored only 2 centuries before he turned 21 in the Shield, one in 2011 and the other in 2012. His third century was made in this years Shield final when he was well over 22. So far he is only scoring centuries every 22.6 innings. Maddinson who is the same age has scored 6 centuries at one every 13.8 innings, Bancroft has 4 at 10.8, Silk has 4 at 10.3 and they are both younger. Harris has a bit of ground to catch up....statistically.
Ruminate
Roar Guru
And yet, they still have to score runs, not just look good. If they only had to look good then Watson would be our best bat whilst Steve Smith would struggle to get a game. I've watched them Don, and yes they look good. Doran is a star in the making and I expect home to do well this year. Harris, the only innings I've sen is the Shield final, and he looked alright, no doubt he has talent but 1 ton in a season and a FC average of 29 is not enough. Bancroft is the same age and has put more runs on the board, more consistently and has deserved his A team selection. They have talent, but it still has to be realised and turned into runs consistently. If they can't do that I don't see how they can be selected until they learn how to consistently convert starts into scores. I feel that most of the bats in the list in the article don't do this well enough, and the stats would support that they do no do this as well as their predecessors. They should be knocking on the door of test cricket through weight of runs in the Shield, I've not seen this.
Benno
Guest
Probably as well as the Englishmen did down here in 2013. No one plays county any more during the Aussie winter if they've got talent. Firstly its difficult getting the visa's to play there for what ever reason, and then there is the lure of 10 weeks of IPL which lines your pockets 10x more than the county season ever would. Anyone half decent is heading to the IPL the rest who aren't as good make a living as a cricket pro in the UK. In years gone by before the IPL if you weren't in the test team touring in the Aussie winter you were playing FC cricket in the UK to earn your money and gain experience. For me that is the biggest difference and why our guys struggle now. Guys like Mark Waugh played 5 seasons at Essex before getting in the test team, Steve played 3 at Sommerset and dined out on English conditions. Different era's I guess and while I don't think IPL is to blame for the decline in skill, it has certainly changed players mindsets on the way they attack rather than grind, and it has taken players away from FC cricket played in other countries such as the UK hence our struggles in the UK since the launch of IPL.
Rich_UK
Guest
Can't wait to see how these young Aussie 'gun' batsmen will do against the swinging ball in the 2019 Ashes ;)
Don Freo
Guest
As a Dutchman, there is no shortage windmills at which to tilt.
Bearfax
Guest
And so poetically stated. Actually I'm convinced now that you're really Don Quixote, on that impossible quest defending those who dont deserve your kindness. To dream the impossible dream.
Don Freo
Guest
You know the stats I discount. I have always enjoyed stats that celebrate someone's achievements. I don't enjoy stats that are misused to denigrate someone in form. When someone is in form, to say he isn't, because a stat from 3, 4 or 5 years ago says what he did today or yesterday doesn't count...that is the use of stats that I reject. It is used that way by the haters and the half-empty glass people. Those of us who love cricket see a spark and fan the flame. Don't use stats as the wet blanket that extinguishes the flame.
Bearfax
Guest
Slick Don, slick. Suggesting its not about stats because it was mentioned by another commentator and therefore its not you making the argument. Slick, Don, slick.
Don Freo
Guest
Just had to correct Ruminate who seems to think Harris has never done anything. It's not a stat. It's a repeat of what the commentators said during one of his great innings last year. I know his first Shield century was when he was 18 and the next when he was 19. That is a bloke with ability. Harris will be on everyone's lips and keyboards by the end of this season. He is not much of a fieldsman, however. Bancroft is just magnificent as a close catcher...both at short leg and in the cordon. Pretty sharp in the outfield too. I'd pick 'em both in the next Test side, add Whiteman, place them all under Mitch Marsh's captaincy and shut the book for the next 12 years...only open it to add the next WA star.
Bearfax
Guest
Hey Don. What are you doing sprouting about stats with young Harris making 3 centuries before he was 21. Not on mate. Your predilection is impressions not stats. What's the world coming to.
Don Freo
Guest
Almost every article on Oz's batsmen will provide you with those arguments. No need to repeat them. Your problem is your over reliance on averages to inform your opinions. Watch them play.
Don Freo
Guest
Harris is one of only 3 batsmen in Shield history to have 3 centuries in shield cricket before the age of 21.
blanco
Guest
Along with picking young players, they have to give these young players more than a series to settle in. Two matches and then dumped is crazy Mitch Marsh says hi. Couldn't agree more with you.Young players need time to find their feet. It's not easy succeeding from the get go.