Test candidates Will Pucovski, Matt Renshaw, Joe Burns and Marnus Labuschagne failed yesterday before Kurtis Patterson hammered 157* against Sri Lanka to underline why he was unlucky not to make the Australian Test squad.
Patterson and Jake Doran (102*) rescued the Cricket Australia XI from 3-25 after Renshaw, Burns and Labuschagne each was dismissed for single figures by the Sri Lankan quicks.
Pucovski looked classy during his knock of 23 before top edging a hook shot to deep fine leg.
Renshaw, Burns, Labuschagne and Pucovski all were named in Australia’s 13-man squad for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka which starts in Brisbane next Thursday.
Those four batsmen are competing for just three spots in Australia’s top six, with Usman Khawaja, Travis Head and Marcus Harris considered locks for the first Test.
Burns is reportedly the front runner to open with Harris in the series opener, with the selectors considering playing Renshaw in the middle order, according to Fairfax Media.
That would be a major change for Renshaw, a career opener whose only experience outside of that position is a few innings batting at three for Somerset in English county cricket last year.
Regardless Renshaw opened yesterday with Burns, the man he partners at the top of the order for Queensland in the Sheffield Shield.
The CA XI were in a mess at 5-98 when Patterson and Doran took control of the match. Patterson by that stage had cruised to 48 from 73 balls looking completely untroubled by a Sri Lankan pace attack which had done so much damage.
Doran played within himself for his first half an hour at the crease, creeping to 4 from 20 balls, before he began to unfurl his full range of strokes.
The 22-year-old Tasmanian wicketkeeper-batsman was particularly aggressive against Sri Lanka’s spinners, sweeping powerfully again and again.
Opposed to the visiting quicks Doran looked to punish them off the back foot, especially through gully and point. With a rock solid defence as his foundation, he began to flay the Sri Lankan bowlers, reaching his ton just before the 75-over limit imposed on each innings in this three-day tour match.
It was a welcome return to form for Doran who averaged just 15 in the first half of this Sheffield Shield season after having a breakout Shield campaign last summer when he piled up 756 runs at 44.
But the most significant knock of the day was by Patterson, who must have been bemused when the likes of Labuschagne and Pucovski were preferred to him in the Test squad.
Kurtis Patterson with New South Wales. (AAP Image/Daniel Pockett)
Patterson has been ultra-consistent for NSW in the Shield, averaging 48, 37, 45 and 53 over the past four Shield seasons. Further underscoring his reliability is the fact that, across 61 innings in that period, he has 21 scores of 50-plus.
Patterson has also been highly impressive when asked to take a step up to play red ball cricket for Australia A and the Cricket Australia XI, making 500 runs at 62 across six matches.
The tall left-hander has a capacity for making tough runs, as he underlined with his Man of the Match performance in the Shield six weeks ago.
In a very low-scoring match on a lightning Perth Stadium pitch against a strong WA attack, Patterson made 107 and 43 batting at first drop. At 25 years of age, with almost 4,000 first-class runs to his name, he has an appealing mix of youth and experience.
Yet, for some reason, the selectors have ignored him. Perhaps yesterday’s imperious ton will finally land Patterson on their radar.
DP Schaefer
Roar Rookie
Terry, outside of replacing one of 3 - 6 (I'd rest Pucovski for this and take him to England) with an alrounder and tweaking the batting order, that's a good pick. According to Foxsports Patterson just officially added to squad for Sri-Lanka tests.
Bob
Guest
Except it is 0% clear to everybody else, how he is supposed to be selected when he is not given the chance to play FC cricket.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Second innings ton when the rest failed again. Bugger me.
terrykidd
Roar Pro
So Patterson scores two unbeaten centuries and Pucovski does the best of the others ..... Renshaw faced many more balls not that means a lot. Labuschagne is not test class. Drop him. Burns has failed. Drop him. The test squad should look like this ...... Harris Khawaja Patterson Head Handscombe Pucovski Paine Cummins Starc Richardson (Hazelwood is out) Lyon.
Leuco
Roar Rookie
Classic Moneyball!
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
Patterson’s in the mix for that spot. Ussie can open with Patterson at #3. Pick neither Burns nor Renshaw. (If Renshaw misses selection, he’ll be in England playing County cricket anyway…available if we need him). Both Burns and Renshaw have probably lost their Sri Lankan opportunity.
Don Freo
Roar Rookie
He's obviously on their radar...or he wouldn't have played in this game.
Nick
Guest
To be fair 2 players have the pressure to perform as they are considered by the media to be vying for one spot. The other one can go out and play as he pleases, if he succeeds the media will hype his non selection if he doesn't do well so what. Vast difference.
Nev
Guest
I think Maxwell is due to play only one shield game in the second half of the season, due to all the ODI cricket scheduled.
The Bush
Roar Guru
Patterson just knocked a second century for the match. If he’s not on the selectors radar now, he never will be.
Bearfax
Roar Guru
You know my opinion Ronan concerning Patterson. I cant understand why he has seemed so much on the outer with National selectors and the media and former cricket greats. You said it. He's consistent, averaging over 40 in first class cricket and over 45 in the last few seasons. Patterson plays anywhere in the order competently and treasures his wicket. You don't see him with a string of sub 20 scores. His first class average is only exceeded by Australia's primary three batsmen, Smith, Warner and Khawaja, as well as just slightly under Maxwell, who must also wonder what needs to be done to get a look in. I'm pleased to see Patterson make such a statement in this game, and glad to see young Doran finally starting to show his potential. I have no concerns about giving players like Pucovski and Sangha a go. But I also think Patterson should have been ahead of them at this stage in their respective careers. This lingering issue concerning conversion rates annoys me. If Patterson is consistently scoring in the 40s to 60s, surely that's far better than a batsman who scores a couple of centuries and then 5-10 scores under 30. I think these selectors need to rethink what consistently wins test matches.
Baggy_Green
Roar Pro
Is there a chance to change the squad now ? If Renshaw is going to bat middle order we might as well play a proper middle-order batter in Patterson
Tana Mir
Roar Rookie
I was fortunate to be around to see the 'Best sustained fast bowling' in the series when Johnson destroyed not just a solid England team but brought and end to English era. Perfection does not exist, but that performance is as close as you can get. Hazlewood and Strac have been off for a while, and they need to be challenged. I trust that will happen. I agree, our system has flaws and hopefully we get right people in place to sort that out.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Sorry you do not get to turn up too intoxicated to play and remain in any Australian team for mine. And I think you are wrong about Maxwell's innate superiority, but he deserves more opportunities to develop his temperament which was not correct, but he appeared to have got it. Crook coaching and poor policy.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Except Tana that after a decade of observation their game does not get better. Starc and Hazlewood are bowling worse than last year. Johnson did not improve. His best was always great and his worst was awful. New batters usually fade and get dropped. Even Clarke got worse and went back to shield and own coach.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Yeah. I thought Maxwell had really arrived at what I hoped he could be.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
I am reminded of one or two players who score just before they would be axed and then do nothing for three tests and we persist with them for another series in which they underachieve.
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Yeah like Watto eh?
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Looks like he's going better than the test picks in the second dig too. Labuschane seems to have bowled OK with 2-27. Might be worth educating, but are the coaches adequate to this task?
Old Greybeard
Roar Rookie
Enough was known you say. Enough to make me wonder at the selections.