About a year ago the majority of the cricketing world was stunned as Australia announced that 20-year-old left hander Matthew Renshaw would be called up into the national Test side to join David Warner at the top of the order in the third Test against South Africa.
Fast forward 12 months and we are again shocked as the now 21-year-old has been dropped from the Australian team in favour of West Australian Cameron Bancroft, right before this crucial Ashes series.
Having performed well in his first Australian summer, which included a monstrous 184 in the Sydney Test against Pakistan, many were buoyed by this young man as he was seen as the long term partner for vice captain David Warner. Following his debut summer, Renshaw would open the innings on Australia’s tour of India and perform admirably scoring two fifties and showing excellent grit and determination in preserving his wicket and adapting to foreign conditions.
His performances over his first four months in the side were extremely promising and showed that he could without a doubt have a big part to play in the Ashes series coming up in the next Australian summer.
Fast forward to November and the selectors have already lost faith in the up and coming left hander after a handful of failures for Queensland in the first three Shield games. For starters I am in no way saying Bancroft doesn’t deserve his spot in the side, the man has been brilliant in the Shield over a number of seasons with an average of just under 40.
The manner in which he has approached his batting at the beginning of this summer has been nothing short of outstanding having scored 442 runs in three games at an average of 110.5.
However, when dealing with young players I feel it is best to stick them, which is why I feel the selectors were wrong in not giving Renshaw a chance to play in the first two Test matches and then re assess from there.
(AAP Image/David Moir)
Having not been able to surpass 19 thus far in the Shield season, Renshaw’s form is definitely a worry, however he was still able to occupy the crease on a number of occasions with his score of 19 off 109 deliveries proving this.
Having Renshaw opening the batting, he is able to stick around and see off the shine of the new ball which in turn helps the likes of David Warner, Steven Smith and Usman Khawaja accelerate.
He complements the top order very well, and despite his poor form in the shield, I felt he had a very important role to play in Australia winning back the Ashes.
Renshaw is also very good at handling pressure, as seen by his performance in the second innings of his debut Test against South Africa and throughout the series against Pakistan and especially India.
Where most batsman fail to adapt, Renshaw was able to put forward solid performances by simply valuing his wicket and grinding out the Indian bowlers.
He may not look pretty at the crease, but his determination to not give up his wicket is something I feel the Australian team lacks a bit at the moment, with much of the top order being very flashy and free flowing players.
Renshaw adds a different dimension to this batting line-up, and I’m unsure as to whether Bancroft can step in to the Test arena and soak up the pressure like him.
With Trevor Hohns signalling the importance of the early shield rounds on the make up of the Ashes squad, it is understandable as to why they made this particular move.
However, if Renshaw is to be a long term player for Australia his performance thus far at Test level surely warrant him at least two opportunities to play himself out of this slump. At his best, Renshaw is an extremely tough customer for bowlers to deal with as he will simply keep on batting and run you into the ground.
He is very similar to previous Ashes opener, Chris Rogers who’s patience and determination complemented the attacking style of David Warner very well. The pair would become one of world crickets best opening partnerships, as there extreme differences in style seemed to click perfectly.
This is the potential I feel Renshaw has opening the innings with Warner with his slow and patient style beautifully complementing that of the aggressive Australian Vice-Captain.
Matthew Renshaw is without a doubt one of the brightest young talents Australian cricket has to offer, which is why it is a shame we will not be seeing him for at least the first two Tests of this Ashes series.
Renowned for his ability to soak up pressure, this would have been a great Test for Renshaw and something that could have really defined his career as an Australian opening batsman.
Saurebh Gandle
Roar Guru
He is still so young 1996 BORN .The Tests runs earlier must have done him world of good earlier ,he can comeback on back of another good run which got him in first place.
AREH
Roar Guru
I was really hoping they'd stick with him, but no I still think Maxwell is more unlucky. Renshaw is 21 and has 10 tests under his belt, and has seriously struggled in the opening three Shield rounds. It would actually almost have been unfair to pick him when so noticeably out of touch, as it all but sets a player up to fail - see Maddinson.
Mattyb
Guest
Pretty drama filled comment there Lance. Marsh was always a chance to return to the side while players like Renshaw and Wade have struggled. People have just been commenting for weeks on end about the side and unfortunately the majority were an absolute mile off.
Geoff from Bruce Stadium
Guest
The decision to drop Renshaw is hardly a shock. I would have been shocked if they'd picked him given how badly out of form he has been. He's young and has plenty of time to restore his technique and confidence. The Tim Paine selection was a shock - but a pleasant and exciting one. Such a good news story. I really hope he makes the most of his opportunity. And the Shaun Marsh selection isn't a shock given the penchant of the selectors to select him if fit. I'm just glad they didn't pick his brother Mitch for the number 6 spot. I really like the mix of skills in this Australian team. Blokes like Warney and McGill and various journos are bagging the selectors for their selection decisions but I think they've got it right. I have a feeling they are going to be a pretty formidable unit in this series.
Lance Skelton
Roar Pro
Matt Renshaw won't ever make it back to the Australian side in my opinion, unless he changes his surname to Marsh.
Perry Bridge
Guest
No - it's not a big shock that he's making way for Bancroft at this time. The main reason for Renshaw's retention would be that his last home test did in fact produce his score of 184. However his output has steadily declined since - after a solid start with 68&31, 60&5 and a 44 in the first dig at Ranchi, since then, 7 hits with just 100 the result at a tick over 14. That alone may not have been enough - but since his return home he's had 6 hits in the JLT OD with 67, 1, 74, 0,4,5. So since the 67 v the CA XI and the 74 v Vic, he had 0,4,5 and now in 6 hits in the shield he's failed to pass 20 with a total of 70 at 11.67 avg. And he's been getting tied down, tangled up and desperately needs to free himself up and rediscover his game - he is young - it will come and he will return. He's had his taste. Many top players have that first taste and return all the better. There was no shock. It was well and truly on the cards. And when you consider Bancroft - who'd up to his last 1st class game at Gloucestershire was struggling - he then knocked off an unbeaten 200 and a 2nd innings 70 odd. He's returned home, with 3 half centuries in the JLT ODs and now in the shield a modest opener v Tassie but top form v NSW and SA. It's a ripe moment for a guy who has certainly been on the radar for a couple of years now. He's not a bolt from the blue. Shaun Marsh's inclusion was a shock. Likewise Tim Paine. But Renshaw's dropping was no shock.