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The Australian cricketing cupboard is bare

13th November, 2016
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What will the Boxing Day pitch have in store? (Photo: AAP)
Roar Guru
13th November, 2016
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With the failings in Sri Lanka trumped by the collapse in Perth last week, compounded by yesterday’s Hobart disaster, many cricket followers and fans are left bewildered.

How can this team fall so far, so fast? Weren’t we ranked number one in Test cricket only a few months ago?

Yet now, if a team innings can last two sessions, it’s time to celebrate. Debate will continue about what is wrong with cricket in Australia and possible solutions. Today, we focus on just one small aspect of our current predicament. Fringe Test players…

Pat Howard, the High Performance Manager, believes we have plenty of talent coming through, citing the opinion of CA’s National Talent Manager Greg Chappell, following the National Under 17’s titles. Boy, isn’t that good news!

A list of 11 batsmen pushing for Test selection can be found on Cricket Australia’s website, consisting of seven specialist batsmen and four all-rounders. George Bailey (40), Cameron Bancroft (37), Peter Handscomb (38), Travis Head (33), Jake Lehmann (49), Nic Maddinson (38) and Kurtis Patterson (42) are the specialist batsmen and some of our problems are revealed in this list.

Only Lehmann and Patterson average 40 or more in First Class cricket. When the four batting all-rounders are listed, its more of the same. Agar (27), Maxwell (42), Henriques (31) and Stoinos (38).

The lack of quality young red ball batsmen is perfectly illustrated in the averages of our best prospects. How else can we have players like Chris Rogers, Adam Voges and Shaun Marsh, in their mid thirties still with the opportunity to cement their places in our Test team?

Experience isn’t a burden and age shouldn’t be as important a number as runs scored, but it does tell the story. The fact that George Bailey makes this list speaks for itself. He is 34, doesn’t average 40 and yet is still one to be watched.

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Why invest in an elder statesmen with such an average average? Chris Rogers? Completely different. He averaged 50 and had years of experience in English conditions. Adam Voges? Not as sound a selection but experience and his mid-40s average had logic and for 12 months he performed exceptionally well.

Shaun Marsh? Hardly makes sense unless we are playing in Sri Lanka. 16 years of First Class cricket to average 38 and still be a strong contender for a Test spot. If that doesn’t ring warning bells, what will?

Our all-rounder obsession, perhaps? Shane Watson was bagged from pillar to post for not delivering with the bat often enough and yet it’s taken 20 Tests of ordinary performances from Mitch Marsh to see him dropped from the side.

The reality that batting all-rounders with FC averages less than 35 can even be on the radar is part of the reason Australia has had more ’10 for less than 100′ batting collapses in the last five years, than any other Test-playing nation.

Our selectors, Pat Howard, Steve Smith can talk it up all they like, but these numbers paint a picture and it isn’t pretty. Coach Darren Lehmann, averaged mid 50s in First Class cricket and played only 27 Tests.

Surely he knows how much First Class runs should matter for Test selections? He should do. He made over 20000 of them before getting his baggy green. If a mid-30s First Class average is the future of Australian Test top six selection, something is wrong. Something is very, very wrong.

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