Many have been critical of Mitchell Marsh’s selection in the Test team.
Many have also been critical of Rod Marsh’s selection policies.
While there is no denying that Mitchell Marsh has performed poorly this season, so have others.
Moises Henriques had a forgettable time in Sri Lanka, and Glenn Maxwell has never shown his Test pedigree until now.
Though you can impulsively call upon a domestic middle-order batsman who has done well in the Sheffield Shield, any actual improvement remains to be seen.
In the last tour of Sri Lanka, the majority of the batsmen failed.
David Warner showed his resilience in the 50-over format as skipper, which may be the only reason many Australian fans are asking for him to be captain.
The results under him were impressive too.
Yet what is important at a juncture like this, when a team regularly succumbs to their opposition, is to withstand the lean patch, without giving into it.
For example, the South Africans faced a barrage of criticism after they finished their tour in India, last year. They were humiliated as they managed to cross the 200-run barrier only twice in eight innings.
The disappointment, at every failure for the South Africans, was palpable.
Players came under scrutiny. Dean Elgar showed his resilience in more than five innings, yet he never made a fifty. JP Duminy’s position came under fire as well.
Many expected them to bounce back in South Africa against England.
Yet they didn’t. A sensational capitulation at the Wanderers saw them lose the series, as well as their number one ranking.
Yes, many could argue Hashim Amla stepping down as skipper led to a turnaround that saw the South Africans win the final Test match of the series at Centurion.
However, what I see in this, is someone raising their hand to win a match for their country. It was Kagiso Rabada’s superb effort at Centurion, where he picked up thirteen wickets, that helped his side secure a 280-run victory.
Ever since then, Faf du Plessis has done an incredible job as captain, as the South Africans have remained unbeaten in three Test matches, with two wins, each against New Zealand and Australia.
Neither Elgar nor Duminy were dropped and they came back to haunt Australia in Perth.
What Australia needs to learn from this exchange is that a bad patch does not stick around forever.
It is vitally important to have a leader the team recognises, rather than shifting and sorting to find the best of the best.
As Sourav Ganguly argues, it is important to stick with a leader, even if the team has failed heavily for one year, rather than to change the captaincy in order to find the natural leader.
This sums up why Pakistan is number two in the Test rankings at this moment.
Misbah-ul-Haq had his disappointing times as captain when his team drew with Zimbabwe, lost to Sri Lanka, and drew with New Zealand in the UAE in 2013-2014.
Yet the PCB stuck with him in the format and now they are reaping the rewards.
It is of vital importance to stick to a team, tell them who the leader is, and let him stay in that job for the next three years.
That is exactly how a team builds, not by removing someone such as Steve Smith, just because he has had four defeats in a row.
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