A year ago Trevor Hohns, Greg Chappell, Mark Waugh and Darren Lehmann selected a four-man attack to regain the Ashes at home with a thumping 4-nil victory in the five-Test series.
Pacemen Pat Cummings (23), Mitchell Starc (22), and Josh Hazelwood (21), joined offie Nathan Lyon (21) to capture all 87 English wickets.
They bowled 810.4 overs between them.
Starc missed the fourth Test with a heel injury, and was replaced by Jackson Bird who bowled 30 wicketless overs, while Mitchell Marsh’s 32, and Steve Smith’s four wicketless overs were the only other bowlers used in the entire series.
It was a marathon performance by the quality quartet.
Next week in Adelaide Hohns, Chappell and Justin Langer are obviously hoping the quartet can repeat last years effort in the first of four Tests against India.
But there are three massive differences in the two series.
There’s no Steve Smith who cracked 687 runs against England at 137.40 with three centuries and two half-centuries. Australia will also miss David Warner’s 441 at 63, with a century and three 50s.
Secondly, India is the world’s number one ranked Test side, and the four-man Australian attack is a year older.
Just to underline the selector’s obsession with pace, the current 14-man Australian squad has Mitchell Marsh and his half-track medium-pacers, plus veteran Peter Siddle, who turned 34 five days ago, and 27-year-old debutant Chris Tremain – making six pacemen all up.
But there’s no spinning back-up for Lyon, unless you include two part-time at best left-armers in Aaron Finch, and Travis Head.
Nothing there to make the long Indian batting order even blink.
So Australia’s chances will rely heavily on Cummins, Starc, Hazelwood and Lyon staying fit, and firing, for the entire series.
That’s a big ask given Australia’s track record with pacemen breaking down.
So a golden opportunity to include leggies Adam Zampa, or Mitchell Swepson, in the squad has been overlooked.
Zampa’s the best bet with 53 shorter format internationals to his credit.
In 33 ODIs the 26-year-old has captured 42 wickets at 36.85, and 22 wickets in 20 T20s at a very impressive 18.27.
The naysayers will contend none of those stats mean a dot in five-dayers, but success at any level breeds confidence.
The pressure will be on Mitch Starc (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
Look what Pakistani leggie Yasir Shah has achieved.
He debuted in a ODI in 2011, and has career figures of just 19 wickets in 19 starts to average 42.47.
Given his Test chance in 2014 against Australia in Dubai, Yasir grabbed 3-66 off 16.3, and 4-50 off 25.
Last time out against the Black Caps in Dubai he had match figures of 14-183, second only to the current Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s 14-116.
That’s given Yasir 195 wickets in 32 Tests at 28.23.
Who is to say Adam Zampa can’t be a better Test performer than the shorter formats?
Sumit
Guest
Bumrah and co can give chin music back.
Simoc
Guest
Those are phenomenal numbers for Yasir Shah. Over 6 wickets per test match to date. Shane Warne averaged just under 5. I agree with this premise. Siddle is a waste of space. He would be unlikely to be in any other of the top ten test nations bowling lineups. Every test batsman would like to face Siddle. There should be a potential leggie in the Australian squad always at home. I don't think T Hohns and G Chappell are up to the job of identifying, grooming and consistently selecting our best team players. M Marsh doesn't belong in the test squad and neither does Siddle. There is a case for the rest but I think these two geriatric selectors have lost their way and should be replaced by younger and smarter people with a view to this improving team regaining the number one spot in world cricket..
JamesH
Roar Guru
Mitch Marsh is a batting allrounder, not a paceman. He has no bearing on the actual bowlers picked, which will be a 3:1 ratio. As far as the squad goes, it's five pacemen and one spinner, which will be culled prior to the test to 3-4 pacemen and a spinner.
anon
Roar Pro
I think we should juice these pitches to suit our fast bowlers. Nice green tops. Send them in first and let Starc soften them up with some chin music. India has no shame in doctoring pitches to favour their strengths. They did it last time we toured.
David Lord
Expert
DaveJ, six pacemen and one spinner in a squad of 14 is an obsession.
DaveJ
Roar Rookie
Since when is having three pacemen and one spinner in Australia (or England, NZ, SA or Windies for that matter) an obsession rather than the norm? If one of the quicks breaks down, they just have to bring in another. If Lyon is injured or fails (but he’ll have a very long leash). Which successful teams in history have had more than four front line bowlers and a couple of part timers? Not the great Windies teams of the 80s, not the Aussies of mid 70s or the ‘00s, not Bradman’s invincibles. The South Africans with Kallis certainly had a valuable extra string to their bow, but if he didn’t bowl they still would have managed nicely. As for suggesting that white ball form should be considered over first class output for Tests, we can only shake our heads in sorrow and sympathy. Apart from the obvious differences between wicket taking in limited overs and first class, the between Yasir and Zampa is so great as to be cavernous. Yasir’s first class average is 27, Zampa’s first is 46! Hardly even good enough to keep his place in the state team. Players like Warne and Yasir might have been given a go early on the basis of promise, but it was on the back of some evidence at first class level. Zampa has done nothing so far.
Paul D
Roar Guru
Gee David, I would think if Lyon gets injured they'd call up another spinner then, wouldn't you think? It's not like planes don't fly between capital cities in this country every single day, multiple times.
Matt H
Roar Guru
The thing is, when we just played the four bowlers, two of them were close to the best pace and spin bowler we've ever had and the others were Gillespie and Lee (or Kasper). Fairly handy. And the forgotten part to that is we always had a batsman or two who could bowl very handily, almost alrounder status. Steve Waugh and Mark Waugh, Greg Blewett, even Michael Bevan and Simon Katich. And we shoe-horned Watson in whenever we could. So the problem is not that Marsh is an allrounder, he's primarily a batsman. It's just that he isn't very good and our top 5 do not have decent bowler between them. That is why Labuschagne would be very handy if his batting comes up to standard. And that is why Glen Maxwell should have been persisted with much more than he was.
David Lord
Expert
Spanner, rotation may well be very necessary if what I've heard since I wrote this column is true. The long-range forecast is for a stinking hot summer which wouldn't be too much fun for Starc, Cummins, and Hazelwood to bowl 540 overs between them as they did in last year's Ashes.
aggregated drupe
Guest
Zampa can't even get a game for South Australia. Absolutely clueless. Have a look at Zampa's stats in the shield, they're crap because he bowls way too flat. If Lyon gets injured we can just bring in a second spinner. Pretty ridiculous article.
Spanner
Roar Rookie
I hope that penny eventually drops, Harvey. It was only ever about giving the quicks a bit of a spell - what terribly negative thinking ! Rotate selection if they need a break.
Brian
Guest
SOK is still the premier spinner in the country (Lyon included) if he can get back to playing regular cricket.
Harvey Wilson
Roar Rookie
I predict Tremain will get at least one game due to injury. The wider selection problem is an obsession with having an all-rounder. It started when Flintoff whipped Australia in the Ashes. It's history, let it go! Australia were at their best with 6 bats, 4 bowlers and a keeper. Whats wrong with the best of everything? Why have one person who is below average at batting and bowling.
Matt H
Roar Guru
Your comparison of Zampa to Shah only makes sense if you compare their first class records before they were selected. Zampa’s Is dreadful. But instead you talked about Shah’s poor one day record, which is the opposite to Zampa. So not really sure what your point is. Frankly if you want a second spin option at the moment, you would pick Labuschagne instead of Marsh. His fast leggies do ok.
JamesH
Roar Guru
Australia hasn't picked a backup spinner in the squad because (a) there is absolutely zero chance of playing two spinners in Australia (I'll be surprised if India do) and (b) Lyon is fit as a fiddle. In the unlikely even that Lyon gets injured, the selectors will simply call up another spinner, who will be no more than 2-3 hours away by plane. It's our pacemen who break down, which is why Siddle and Tremain are part of the squad. One or both of them will be cut from the squad in the leadup to the test. Our selectors do have an obsession with pace, but even if they didn't the bowling attack would look exactly the same as it does now. I really can't see how including Zampa or Swepson in the squad would change anything. Not that Zampa deserves to be picked anyway. He averages over 46 from his 35 first class matches, at a sky-high strike rate of 70. Would he even be picked ahead of Lloyd Pope for SA now? Holland is surely next in line, with either Swepson or Agar as backups. Swepson can be expensive but is a wicket-taker, while Agar doesn't get many wickets but can at least keep it tight. Both average under 40 with the ball.
G Knight
Guest
Not sure if you are suggesting playing a 2nd spinner instead of a pace bowler or instead of a batsman. Either is ridiculous. A spinner can easily be brought into the squad if Lyon gets injured. When was the last time Lyon missed a match?
Paul
Roar Guru
David,I don't think Australia has an obsession with pace but it has two issues, one of which you mentioned. Which spinner in Australia is genuine Test quality on our pitches? Zampa might be if he could stop bowling so many "hit me's". Agar, maybe but let's face it, unless you're an exceptional bowler, trying to get wickets with spin in Australia is a tough gig - just ask Ravi Ashwin, Graeme Swann, etc. The other question is where you might play this spinner? Pitches now are either roads or fast bowler friendly. Spinners will still get wickets but not bags and not regularly, especially when India is your opposition.
Train Without A Terminus
Guest
"Mitchell Marsh's half track medium pacers" will light the board up with angry little Don's David ☺. Nicely put.