The past week or so has thrown up a trio of rather alarming events.
At number one, there was the revelation that the environment around the Australian team has skewed so far from reality – and normality, come to think of it – that ludicrous slogans such as “elite honesty” now adorn the dressing room walls.
Number two was the disgusting expose by a no-doubt award-winning journalist that disgraced former captain Steve Smith was seen having a few drinks with his clubmates in the aftermath of a 20-over grade outing. And more than one drink as well, just to mock any outraged onlookers.
The third was Mitchell Marsh, yes he of impeccable lineage and dismal returns in the UAE, rattling up a large century for Western Australia in their Shield outing in Brisbane.
It would be rather too easy to mock all of the above – struggling side resorting to management-speak mumbo-jumbo; please just read the Daily Telegraph article as no words I can find will better it; shouldn’t be anywhere near the Test team etc. etc. – but there may well be something relevant in one of them.
Not the first, obviously, as this is nothing more than a bit odd. Exaggerated by the fact the team it’s supposedly inspiring couldn’t beat an egg at the minute but hardly the first time this kind of thing has been tried.
If Steve Waugh’s all-conquering outfit had done this it would’ve been lauded as the ‘no stone left unturned’ approach, the ‘one per centers’ that divide the great from mere mortals. As it is, the context makes it looks like utter nonsense but hardly worth getting wound up about.
As for the second, would it be so tricky to leave the bloke alone? He’s done wrong, been punished for it and, er, that’s it. His decision to behave in a – stop the press – normal fashion doesn’t warrant a few hundred words of comment. If a correlation can be found between a batting collapse in Perth and a man drinking beer in Sydney then bravo to whoever discovers it.
In fact, even if Smith had got absolutely plastered – as, would you believe, he is entitled to as a grown adult – is anybody interested? That’s a rhetorical question.
Now for the third – and this is where I stand to be corrected.
Mitchell Marsh (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)
Marsh, unless something drastic occurs between now and the first week of December, will be part of the Australian XI that takes to Adelaide Oval to face India in the first Test of the summer.
I can already hear the howls of derision but if recent backing was being handed out in the form of a team management role then demotion, if it is indeed coming, would probably not be so swift.
But what should have been learnt, if nothing else, is that as long as he bats right handed, Marsh is not a Test match number four. Number six maybe if a five-man bowling attack is desired (he could do with actually bowling a bit more) and possibly seven if the configuration is tinkered with, but not four.
Not then, not now, not ever.
Don’t be fooled by where he bats for his domestic employers. It should be a consideration in some instances – Aaron Finch perhaps – but not in this one.
An article, on this site by this hand, of the not-so-distant past put forward the opinion of Marsh showing signs of improvement at the highest level and that he was worth persevering with. But there was definitely a double-take to be had when Justin Langer, Tim Paine or whoever picks the batting order plonked Marsh in at second drop in the desert. I bet he couldn’t believe his luck.
And if Australia are to go anywhere in the next few months, a straightforward method of putting round pegs in round holes wouldn’t go amiss.
Select batsmen to bat, all-rounders to all-round, wicket-keepers to keep wicket and bowlers to bowl; the team simply isn’t strong enough for those in command to out-think themselves and the travails of Marsh junior against Pakistan was a case in point.
Improvement may not be immediate, and a decent Indian outfit with a good attack will be far from pushovers in the weeks to come, but there is a better chance of everything going in the right direction if some clarity of method is utilised. Australia are where they are and fudging the details, with clichéd soundbites to match, is no solution.
Come to think of it, there may be something in that ‘elite honesty’ slogan after all.
Alec Swann
Expert
I was covering Northants when he had a season over here and he was excellent. Ran in all day, bowling unchanged for full sessions on some occasions, didn't give away a great deal and rarely had an off day. Pace is all well and good, and it certainly doesn't so any harm to gave it, but it's not the be all and end all.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
Like Siddle, he's probably exactly the sort of bowler who could do very well in England. Doesn't bowl very fast, but is able to just keep putting it on the right spot and get any movement out of the pitch that's available. So in seaming English conditions he could be a handful.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
I'm sure when I first saw Abbott appearing for NSW I heard them talking about how he can bat, but he's coming in at #11 in this NSW lineup and has a first class batting average of 15. So I don't think he's in there because he's considered an allrounder. As a pure bowler, especially where, at the moment, there aren't a lot of batsmen making loads of runs in Shield cricket, to have played 42 matches, with a bowling average of 37, and still consistently getting picked as one of the main bowlers is a bit bizarre. I know NSW top three pace bowlers rarely get to play Shield cricket, but I'd still think there would be some other good young fast bowlers coming through who could be better options than Abbott.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
White is past it, often he's scored most of his runs coming in as low as 7 in the order for NSW these days which has helped keep his average up. Kurtis Patterson just can't score hundreds. He's probably the most consistent scorer of half-centuries in the comp, but just can't convert them to hundreds. A top 6 batsman needs to be able to score hundreds.
Alec Swann
Expert
Trent Copeland is a fine performer who would do a decent job anywhere and Australia could do a lot worse than bring him over here next year.
Alec Swann
Expert
Paul I think the older Marsh's time has run its course but whether you're a fan of Mitchell or not, someone likes him so he's not going anywhere. You're spot on about the make up of the side. Too often the thinking is too clever for its own good and the result is muddled.
Alec Swann
Expert
Bush Can't disagree with any of that but I reckon, barring injury, Marsh is a banker to start in the first Test. I'd even put a few quid on it if I could find an English bookie who would take the bet!
Michael Keeffe
Roar Guru
It's actually very easy. Our two best openers are clearly Burns and Renshaw. They easily have a better overall record than all the other 10 state openers in Shield cricket both in terms of averages and ability to make 100's. Then for 3 - 6 pick the 4 guys with the best records. The only exceptions are if a guy is clearly out of form or has been given a lot of chances and failed regularly at test level. None of this rubbish where a guy who averages 32 but makes a hundred or two to start the shield season getting picked. Our best batsmen (outside of Smith & Warner) are Khawaja (44.32), Lynn (43.53), Maxwell (41.07), Lehmann (40.75), S. Marsh (40.62), C. White (40.14), K. Patterson (40.07). Lynn isn't playing red ball cricket at the moment while he gets back to full fitness and I would personally put S. Marsh in the category of having had a lot of chances. If he's picked I get it though, but M Marsh...please! I don't think age should come into it. Just pick the best team for now and run with it. We need to focus on winning now. The test team is not for player development. That's what first class and grade cricket are for. So in this case the batting lineup should be Renshaw, Burns, Khawaja, Maxwell, White, Lehmann. Next cab off the rank is Kurtis Patterson. Paine is our keeper and captain and Cummins, Starc, Hazlewood and Lyon pick themselves. Easiest selection meeting ever.
anon
Roar Pro
As I wrote in another thing, these are PROFESSIONAL athletes whose only JOB is to WIN games of cricket. You perform you move up. You fail you get demoted. Simple. You can focus on winning without the personal abuse and flagrant cheating. PROFESSIONAL athletes all over the world every day manage to focus solely on WINNING without cheating or personal abuse. If you're telling me WINNING matches for your country the number one objective then I won't invest myself in the result of a 5-day game of cricket. Why would I care about the result if it's secondary for the players and coach. These "elite honesty" rubbish shows me that Langer just isn't up to it. The players probably think it's ridiculous but no-one is going to stand up to the coach and say that. They just nod their nods, say good idea, don't rock the boat. Like in any professional environment.
AREH
Roar Guru
I don't mind that at all - especially seeing Paine is more than capable at six. I've long thought no. 7 was the ideal position for M.Marsh in the ODI team - when picked, of course - and it wouldn't be such a silly idea in the test XI either.
AREH
Roar Guru
It appears Smith can't have a beer on his own, or with others without being targeted. That bit of journalism the other day was really poor. The guy is serving his ban, and stunning grade crowds while doing so. Had the suspension not been administered with such overkill, he might've played in Perth on Sunday.
Pope Paul VII
Roar Rookie
Having drinks with your team mates after play is the ulitmate in elite honesty.
Paul
Roar Guru
Dead right.
jameswm
Roar Guru
Just looked at the first 3 wickets. Doolan short outside off, hit it straight to point. Silk short and caught off the helmet, and then Webster caught down leg side! Time to put your lotto numbers in Trent.
jameswm
Roar Guru
Yeah Copeland is doing very well, and can bat too. The current NSW bowling lineup is Copeland, Abbott, SOK and Lyon, pretty handy. Abbott is supposedly more of an all rounder, but is he really the next best fast medium we have in NSW? Tassie are currently 4 for 115 at lunch and you guessed it, Copeland has all 4 wickets, 3 of which were caught behind. Wade and Doran at the cease, Paine to follow. Some good Shield players there to get through. A bit of rain to come this afternoon though I think.
Rellum
Roar Guru
Copeland is an exceptional bowler. I would rather him be on the plane to England for the ashes than say Bird or Sayers. He is in great form and is a gun on seaming wickets.
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
If all the international players are back playing shield cricket, I get crediting runs against NSW a bit extra (against Hazlewood, Cummins, Starc and Lyon!), but when you are replacing those guys with Abbot and Copeland, not so much!
Chris Kettlewell
Roar Guru
I'm sure if he didn't go out and have a few beers with the team afterwards the headline would be something like "Prima-Donna Smith too good to have a beer with team mates". It's called someone so desperately wanting to cast him in a bad light that they will try to twist anything into a negative headline.
Paul D
Roar Guru
Re: your first paragraph, absolutely! Cricket for me is perhaps the closest fit to something like tennis, where it's a physical skill based game without any contact between players - right now we have a whole team of Kyrgioses when we need to be conducting ourselves more like Rafters I hadn't heard about the Smith story either but from all accounts it's crap and a massive beat up. There was a photo of him in new york having a beer a few months ago and it was drummed up similarly. Mitchell marsh always looks he's one ball away from getting bowled straight through the gate. Chris Rogers made that criticism of him a few years ago, and as someone who knows a thing or two about preserving his wicket I'm inclined to trust his judgment. Definitely should not be batting higher than 6 and frankly I'd have him at 7 after the wicketkeeper.
Spanner
Roar Rookie
Once again lads - the recipe is simple, play your best 6 batters, your best 4 bowlers (at least one of them a spinner) your best wicky and make one of them the skipper ! Unless there is a Botham, Dev, Miller, Akram or the equivalent waiting in the wings then there is no room for any part timers ! Ian Chapell states a true all rounder has to be good enough to be picked in team in either of his disciplines. If M. Marsh is in the top 6 batters in the nation then he is in but please dont call him an allrounder, it is a slight against those who were !