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If there’s been any doubt about where David Warner should bat in the World Twenty20 tournament, that’s now decided.
He has to open.
The explosive left-hander is the kindred spirit of West Indian master-blaster Chris Gayle, and there’s never been any conjecture where he bats.
Both have an opener’s mentality, no waiting around, be the first to strap on the pads, and get on with it. An opener’s mindset is very different to anyone else in the order, that’s what makes them so special.
But for some obscure reason known only to the Australian selectors, Warner has become a batting gypsy. Was it because the selectors picked too many openers to badly balance the squad for the World T20, or was it to stiffen the fragile middle order?
Whatever the reason or reasons, there’s one obvious standout – Warner is one of the most dangerous batsmen in the world in any format, and he must open.
The next vital question will be selecting his partner. That’s also an obvious standout – Usman Khawaja.
Forget the tricky old hat reasoning behind the benefit of having a left and right hand opening combination to ‘confuse’ the opposition attack, Warner and Khawaja will create their own confusion with their talent.
Captain Steve Smith should always bat three, then the genuine problem starts with 4-5-6-7 – the fragile section.
The contenders – Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, and James Faulkner.
Finch is the more interesting one of the five.
The selectors have been quite happy putting Australia’s best opener Warner in their revolving door policy, but have stuck religiously to Finch as an opener.
Why?
Finch is a far more dangerous batsman than any of the other four, so why not name him at four? With the squad they’ve got, Finch is easily the best bet.
That leaves Watson at five, Marsh at six, and Faulkner at seven.
No Glenn Maxwell?
He had his last chance against the Kiwis when if he had any cricket brains he would have steered Australia home. But he decided cowboy shots were more exciting than showing responsibility to his country, and Australia lost by eight.
To complete the order, Ashton Agar at eight, keeper Peter Nevill at nine, John Hastings at ten, and Adam Zampa at 11.
Agar after his 18-run over gift to Martin Guptill?
Yes, for three reasons. The selectors named only two recognised spinners in the 15-man squad, so both must play every game on these turning Indian wickets.
Secondly, Agar’s horror over is done and dusted, and thirdly he’s effectively a batting all-rounder rather than a bowling all-rounder.
Hastings completes the side as a more economical T20 pace bowling proposition than either Josh Hazlewood or Nathan Coulter-Nle, and he’s a far better proposition with the bat.
It’s still baffling as to why Coulter-Nile and Andrew Tye were selected in the first place.
So the attack will be Hastings, Watson, Faulkner, Zampa and Agar.
That’s the side to have the best chance to win their next three games against India, Pakistan and Afghanistan to reach the semis.