Openers for the first Test

[Gough]

Pick two.

 

[Around the Wicket]

Khawaja has backed Renshaw so odds are Renshaw will get the first crack.

 

[Around the Wicket]

I think Renshaw is shit but with all the contenders not putting runs on the board I'd go Renshaw and fingers crossed he gets a few.

 

[cats_09]

Can we please have 3 votes to include Boonie?

 

[Plugger35]

If you want to bring back Boonie then Swampy Marsh should be an option along with Mitch Marsh, they're an iconic opening duo.

 

[Cursed Cat]

Khawaja and Labuschagne to open.

I like Green at 3.

Webster retained.

 

[Jim Prideaux]

Khawaja & Weatherald. Labs at 3.

 

[Aussie_boy]

The fact Usman's spot is a lock shows you how few options there are. I'd probably go Marnus personally.

Khawaja, Marnus, Green, Smith, Head, Webster

 

[HTPunter]

Renshaw has done enough for me.

And Khawaja because he’ll get at least one big score even though I’m expecting 6-7 failure (<20) scores

 

[Gough]

If you want to bring back Boonie then Swampy Marsh should be an option along with Mitch Marsh, they're an iconic opening duo.

There a Marsh on the list, it doesn't specify which one.

 

[dumb]

usman/renshaw
ussie hanging on for dear life but maybe some home pitches might help. do worry he may get beaned a bit by their express bowlers if they play.
renshaw - had a very poopy patch but maybe some form coming back. immediately replaces warner in the slips.
bancroft - papers are stamped. shocking form for much of last season
konstas - a slot was his if he even had moderate success but has pooped it away for now. still time. do your shield stint, learn your game etc.
harris - journeyman replacement we can slot in for a series and then kick to the curb again if renshaw spuds it up.
marnus, green, marsh, trav - not their game. marnus can open if the team bus has crashed.
mcsweeney - no, maybe somewhere else in the order though if necessary. but again, this guy is still a baby and there's time for him to come back down the track.
kellaway, hunt, weatherald - no, but lets watch their form again this season
boonie - should get a game before konstas. good for morale. trav will need to move out of bat pad.

 

[PhatBoy]

This is the Phil Collins of cricket discussions. If it were being played out live on my verandah I would still sit on my couch watching YouTube clips of Will Ferrell instead.

 

[Bedi]

Can we please have 3 votes to include Boonie?

I'd use all 3 to vote to bring back Boonie

 

[PhatBoy]

I'd use all 3 to vote to bring back Boonie

My first cricketing crush.

 

[Pistol Night]

My first cricketing crush.

My eternal airline crush

 

[sabso]

Crawley and duckett

 

[RedOrWhite]

Khawaja & Weatherald. Labs at 3.

This is what I'd go with too

 

[cricketnut14]

another vote for bringing back boonie here

in all honesty, they probably gonna pick 3 openers in the squad and keep us guessing until the morning of the test match.

 

[cricketnut14]

its really been a dogs breakfast since the warner retirement.

we all know smith got the gig after deliberating for some time. this effectively made room for the injury prone cam green and allowed us to play green and marsh in the same side.

smith did the job for 4 tests and during the winter stated that he'd be batting at 4 at the start of the following summer (last season).

the selectors then came out and said we'd be starting the summer v India with the same 6 bats (Khawaja, Smith, Labs, Green, Head, Marsh). so if Smith wasn't pencilled in to open, which one of the other 4 were.

Green got injured during that winter and as we know and McSweeney got the gig. to me this says that Green was earmarked to open for that summer.

thankfully since the warner retirement we are 11-3 and 1 draw, with losses to the west indies where smith carried his bat, a loss in perth v India and the WTC final loss.

hoping this discussion will be put to bed after this summer with the imminent retirement of usman and the selectors back in the right 2 and develop a great opening partnership for 5 years or so.

 

[Cmarsh]

David Warner might still be Australia's best opener.

 

[sabso]

David Warner might still be Australia's best opener.

If haydos can still swing a bat he might be up there too, plus he’ll be right there on the mcg when he loses his bet

 

[RedOrWhite]

If haydos can still swing a bat he might be up there too, plus he’ll be right there on the mcg when he loses his bet

If it meant they were not in the commentary box I'd happily have either of them still open now

 

[PhatBoy]

If it meant they were not in the commentary box I'd happily have either of them still open now

Proof that people can change one’s perception: I utterly hated Warner. Long before the sandpaper stuff and all of it. I genuinely like the guy now.

He is a million times more knowledgeable about overseas players than most of the guys he commentates with (natural I guess as he’s played with a lot of them), he’s not overtly patriotic in the box, and he knows his limitations as a commentator. He won’t try and talk too much about bowling as an art, for example, because he knows he wasn’t a bowler, so why bother trying to come off as an expert on it. He’s quite self effacing and under-dramatic compared ‘Big Dos’ who can turn a leave to a harmless delivery outside off stump into the Signing of the Declaration of Independence if he’s given the airtime to do so.

 

[RedOrWhite]

Proof that people can change one’s perception: I utterly hated Warner. Long before the sandpaper stuff and all of it. I genuinely like the guy now.

He is a million times more knowledgeable about overseas players than most of the guys he commentates with (natural I guess as he’s played with a lot of them), he’s not overtly patriotic in the box, and he knows his limitations as a commentator. He won’t try and talk too much about bowling as an art, for example, because he knows he wasn’t a bowler, so why bother trying to come off as an expert on it. He’s quite self effacing and under-dramatic compared ‘Big Dos’ who can turn a leave to a harmless delivery outside off stump into the Signing of the Declaration of Independence if he’s given the airtime to do so.

Fair enough. I agree on Warner regarding his knowledge of modern tactics, as you say it helps he's recently retired from internationals and still plays some T20, and that he's not usually biased or parochial. He still needs serious work on his vocab and delivery however as I sometimes get frustrated at certain mispronunciations of his.

As for Hayden if he didn't exaggerate the smallest things he'd probably be fine as we don't want them all being vanilla but I can't stand the bloke in the box at times. I guess there'll be frequent switching between the channels depending on who's on.

 

[PhatBoy]

Fair enough. I agree on Warner regarding his knowledge of modern tactics, as you say it helps he's recently retired from internationals and still plays some T20, and that he's not usually biased or parochial. He still needs serious work on his vocab and delivery however as I sometimes get frustrated at certain mispronunciations of his.

As for Hayden if he didn't exaggerate the smallest things he'd probably be fine as we don't want them all being vanilla but I can't stand the bloke in the box at times. I guess there'll be frequent switching between the channels depending on who's on.

Warner is definitely not Jonathan Agnew when it comes to his enunciation and vocabulary that’s for sure