Here’s a head scratching problem for the boffins at Cricket Australia regarding the Aussies’ latest Twenty20 failure.
How can Australia be number one at Tests, dominate one day cricket, have a some of the best T20 players in the world, run one of the most successful T20 domestic competitions – and yet do so badly at T20 internationals?
Australia didn’t make the semis in the latest World Cup, they’ve never won a World T20, they have a lousy win-loss ratio in all international games and they rank sixth in the world.
It’s been over a decade now, and Australia has never had a consistently strong national T20 side.
But there is something to take comfort in – their record at one day cricket.
Australia has dominated one day cricket for so long and with such thoroughness that it’s often forgoten how long it took them to achieve consistent results in that sphere.
Australia was a pioneer in one day cricket. They hosted the first one day international, were runners up at the first World Cup, created World Series Cricket, which – as Channel Nine pundits never cease reminding us – revolutionised the game.
From the get-go Australia had some of the most exciting one-day players on the planet: the Chappell brothers, Dennis Lillee, David Hookes and Allan Border.
But it took over a decade for their international team to achieve consistent success. The ’79 and ’83 World Cup campaigns were disasters. They failed to make WSC finals in 79-80, they lost finals in 81-82, 83-84, 84-85 and 86-87 and had to resort to underarm bowling to win in 80-81.
They lost one-day tournaments in England (80), Pakistan (82), Sri Lanka (83), West Indies (84) and the UAE (85, 86, 87).
They lost the World Championship of Cricket (remember that?) at home in 84-85.
And the thing is, Australia weren’t consistently bad, they could be awesome – but then they’d be terrible. And they’d especially struggle in big matches and/or playing overseas.
Just like the T20 side now.
All sorts of excuses were thrown up. The players were paid too much money, the players were paid too little money, the players didn’t care, the schedule mixed up one day cricket with Test cricket too much (or not enough).
They didn’t play as much domestic one day cricket as England, they played too much one day cricket, Greg Chappell’s captaincy, Kim Hughes’ captaincy, Alan Border’s captaincy, they played the West Indies too often, the selectors didn’t pick enough specialists, the selectors picked too many specialists.
Australia had their moments but couldn’t consistently get it together until the 1987 World Cup. After that they became the best one day team in the world and kept that ranking for a number of years, admittedly stumbling in places like the ’92 World Cup, but always being someone to be feared. Since the mid 90s, Australia’s record has been incredible.
What happened? Well, the team got some key players around who selectors could build a side. They had solid openers (David Boon, Geoff Marsh), dependable middle order batsmen players (Border, Dean Jones), all rounders (Steve Waugh, Simon O’Donnell), spinners (Peter Taylor). They brought in the right amount of specialists. They had consistent leadership. They stuck with their side. They had time to gel.
The current Australian T20 side doesn’t have a nucleus. There’s a new captain, new openers, new batting order, new wicketkeeper, new bowling line up and more new openers.
Bowlers get picked because they’re fast and/or have a bit of moxie instead of being in form. The batting order changes from game to game. The whole team changes from game to game. The team never gets a decent run of matches to learn how to play together.
The selectors need to pick the core of a side – their openers, middle order, keeper, basic attack. Not the whole side, just a nucleus. Then they need to let them settle. If they do that I think Australia will be right – there’s too much talent in the side it just needs to click.
That is, of course, if that’s what Cricket Australia want.
At the moment, Australia’s vested interest is in the BBL, our domestic comp – not international ones.
The state of English football proves that you can have a very strong domestic competition and a poor international team if you are always giving precedence to the former over the latter.
There is no reason why Australia’s T20 side shouldn’t click and become the world dominant force the one day team is – if Cricket Australia are willing to invest the time.
But are they?
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