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Rod Marsh is signing off in style as chair of the current selection panel, with the selection of Joe Mennie for the first Test squad stirring the hornet’s nest in his final period in charge of the national team.
Nothing against Mennie – he picked up 50 first class wickets last season and is the type of change/stock bowler the team needs. He deserves a shot.
But the justification? He is there to cover Marsh’s two ‘prodigal’ sons Shaun and Mitchell as batting cover. Why didn’t Mennie tour Sri Lanka then to cover Moises Henriques?
In August, I was clearly as bemused and frustrated as many cricket followers with the team selections following the abject collapse in Sri Lanka.
My argument on this whole debate – if we are picking bowlers like Mennie on form, why aren’t we applying similar principles to the top 6?
Australia’s bowling is reasonably settled for a home summer, and the top six needs the focus.
Like it or not, Shaun Marsh got a hundred in Sri Lanka and deserves retention in the team.
Marsh had a strong Shield game this week and has demanded selection, even if it is for the first time in his career his form has done so.
The batsmen that dominated so well – on our highways – last summer also deserve the chance to have a crack.
Joe Burns is another case in point – run machine last summer, but he couldn’t play spin in Sri Lanka. Comes back and hits a solid ton this week against New South Wales. He deserved his second chance and it is incredible that he was omitted.
In this sense – the top six selects itself. I would open with Burns on the basis of having a left-right opening combination.
Joe Burns
David Warner
Usman Khawaja
Steve Smith
Adam Voges
Shaun Marsh
Of this group – it is not Burns and Khawaja that should be vulnerable – it is Voges. The honeymoon is over, and he simply needs runs.
The fact we are still debating whether Mitchell Marsh is in this team highlights the malaise in searching for our team balance. We don’t have a Test quality all-rounder – and traditionally our strong sides do not have bits and pieces players.
On all-rounders, the last one who was fairly useful for me was Paul Reiffel. Again though, he batted at eight and was part of a four-bowler attack.
Effective first change seamer with a Test batting average of 26.52 with the over 100 wickets at 26.96 from 35 Tests. That is more than useful by anyone’s books and many strike bowlers would love that record.
Test level is a 6-4-1 formation (for want of a better word) for an Australian side.
Phil Nevill is certainly the keeper, but it would be handy to get some more runs from him. Having seen Matthew Wade’s ineptitude almost costing Nathan Lyon his career, Neville’s work shows the importance of having a strong keeper.
We have been very spoilt recently with the talents of Brad Haddin and Adam Gilchrist redefining the keeper-batsmen role.
The biggest miss in this whole story is the inclusion of Peter Siddle in the team.
Siddle burst onto the scene as a strong back of a length 140km bowler, whose international career took off under the tutelage of Craig McDermott when, as national bowling coach, he subtlety added half a yard to Siddle’s length. Swing and seam came with this and suddenly Siddle had a much more variable and effective tool-kit.
Due to a loss of pace and a subsequent back injury earlier this year in New Zealand, it is not as if he is setting the world on fire compared to some of his compatriots.
Siddle does not have a Test wicket five-for in over three years now. His best Test bowling figures were from 2009. Siddle will always give heart and soul, but unfortunately nowadays is honest at best.
Jackson Bird or Joe Mennie should be fighting for the third seamer’s spot. To join the established Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon as our bowling quartet. Bird would get my nod on his five-wicket haul in the last Test in New Zealand.
It is incredible that we are still throwing around the names of Glen Maxwell, Moises Henriques and the aforementioned Mitchell Marsh in this mix. That they are given opportunities and comments beggars belief.
Our focus must be developing the top six. Kurtis Patterson, Cam Bancroft, Peter Handscomb and the like need to keep churning out the runs to challenge for these spots.
This should be Marsh’s focus for final chapter of his selection tenure – build the foundations and expectations for batting in the Australian cricket team.
It is not about taking someone’s spot because you can bowl off-spin or handy medium pace, and have hit 75 off 34 balls in a recent 20-20.
Back to first principles – scoring loads of runs and batting for long periods will get you noticed and rewarded to be an elite batsmen in our top six.
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