Ongoing Test match XI speculation thread.

[Gough]

Jhye is the obvious successor to Starc. Without any FC cricket in so long though, it's too soon to bring him in now. I'd probably go back to Pattinson for South Africa if he is fit and hope that Jhye is ready to go in the next year or so. Starc is just too inconsistent and has failed to get it done against quality opposition too many times now.

Starc and Wade seem to be the two obvious ones to tap on the shoulder after this series. I admit to erring on the conservative side and not liking wholesale knee jerk reactions I'm also assuming that Puckovski is going to be fit and Lyon's form to be a blip rather than long term decline, ideally he and Paine can hold/regain their form and can get a send off after the upcoming home Ashes. Starc will be the easier of him and Wade to replace, the fast bowling stocks are pretty good, worryingly is who replaces Wade?

 

[Ducky Tie]

Starc and Wade seem to be the two obvious ones to tap on the shoulder after this series. I admit to erring on the conservative side and not liking wholesale knee jerk reactions I'm also assuming that Puckovski is going to be fit and Lyon's form to be a blip rather than long term decline, ideally he and Paine can hold/regain their form and can get a send off after the upcoming home Ashes. Starc will be the easier of him and Wade to replace, the fast bowling stocks are pretty good, worryingly is who replaces Wade?

Yeah that middle order spot is a mess. Green has the game for five I think. Takes his time getting in and is technically sound. Given he is already being picked ahead of everyone outside the team, I'd be moving him to five before anyone else gets a crack. The ongoing mess that is the BBL being played concurrently with the test summer hamstrings the batting options. If Khawaja or Patterson etc had been hammering runs the last month, this would all seem much simpler. As it is, we probably go back to Head I guess. It would be ideal if a genuine opener emerged to partner Warner and Pucovski could play at five.

Warner, Pucosvki, Labuschagne, Smith, Green, Head, Paine, Pattinson, Cummins, Lyon, Hazlewood. Probably the XI I'd go with for the first test against SA. Head doesn't sit particularly well with me but it's hard to see what else they'll do. I'd love to see Maxwell get a shot but that won't happen obviously.

 

[big_e]

Khwaja cannot produce at Test level, looks great in all of the lower forms of the game though.

One of the few recent Australian test cricketers to average 40+ with the bat. In the current side, he'd be behind only Smith, Labuschagne and Warner.

 

[hawkman]

If he is to be a genuine all-rounder, he needs to start taking some wickets. It's hard to understand why he isn't though.

Probably needs to have a year of bowling to get back closer to what he was. At the moment he is a batsman who can bowl. His first series was decent but will nerd to be pushing his average up higher to be a genuine top 6 batsman

My main issue with the comment was that he is a tad slow in the field. At gully, where he will be spending most of his time he has been very good

 

[Dime A Dozen]

Starc and Wade seem to be the two obvious ones to tap on the shoulder after this series. I admit to erring on the conservative side and not liking wholesale knee jerk reactions I'm also assuming that Puckovski is going to be fit and Lyon's form to be a blip rather than long term decline, ideally he and Paine can hold/regain their form and can get a send off after the upcoming home Ashes. Starc will be the easier of him and Wade to replace, the fast bowling stocks are pretty good, worryingly is who replaces Wade?

Am I naive to think that Kurtis Patterson could still be that guy? Averages 40 in FC cricket, still only 27.

Know he didn't start the season well in Shield but still coming back from the quad injury. Think he has the quality to be a consistent number 5 for us. Made 94 against England A last year.

 

[Gough]

Put Trav in front of a bowling machine with electrodes attached to his bollocks and every time he swings outside off he gets a zap.

 

[Ducky Tie]

If he is to be a genuine all-rounder, he needs to start taking some wickets. It's hard to understand why he isn't though.

It's amazing how similar his action is to Watson's. Lumbers in very similarly and has a similar side on action. His pace wasn't quite what I expected. Seemed to generally be closer to 135 than in the 140s. There's no reason he can't be succesful with that approach, but he probably needs to find a few tricks. Given it seems likely that he will be used in a bit of a sporadic way, rather than having regular long spells, I reckon it would be worthwhile having Watson do some work with him on his bowling. Watson was exellent at doing just enough with the ball to cause trouble. He also has plenty of experience at being that fifth bowler who doesn't get the chance to work into long spells.

 

[Ducky Tie]

Put Trav in front of a bowling machine with electrodes attached to his bollocks and every time he swings outside off he gets a zap.

The problem Head has is that his weakness is also his biggest strength. He scores the bulk of his runs with that slash outside off, yet it also is his most common downfall. I don't really see how he works through that. He doesn't have the 360 degree game to get rid of the shot.

 

[Some Idiot]

One of the few recent Australian test cricketers to average 40+ with the bat. In the current side, he'd be behind only Smith, Labuschagne and Warner.

Because he's not up to scratch in the field he needs to perform significantly better than other players.

 

[corbies]

The problem Head has is that his weakness is also his biggest strength. He scores the bulk of his runs with that slash outside off, yet it also is his most common downfall. I don't really see how he works through that. He doesn't have the 360 degree game to get rid of the shot.

Finally someone has taken up my line. I lost count of the amount of times I have written on this board that his weakness is his biggest strength when everyone seems to think he gets out because of mental lapses.

 

[Ducky Tie]

Finally someone has taken up my line. I lost count of the amount of times I have written on this board that his weakness is his biggest strength when everyone seems to think he gets out because of mental lapses.

Yeah agreed. It's a tricky one, but I don't think he can take it out of his game. He really just needs to get better and more consistent at it, if he's going to make it as a test player.

 

[imagifED]

Bryce Street? Has the name and look about him.

 

[ozaddy]

Finally someone has taken up my line. I lost count of the amount of times I have written on this board that his weakness is his biggest strength when everyone seems to think he gets out because of mental lapses.

Head has a 360 game, but he definitely gets targeted outside off because of his compulsion. Agree he does make a lot of runs there. He should be more cautious, maybe in the middle of green and wade.

Sent from my Mi9 Pro 5G using Tapatalk

 

[big_e]

Because he's not up to scratch in the field he needs to perform significantly better than other players.

How much better? Two runs per innings? Five?

Or is this one of those "I don't like the bloke so I'll find any excuse to shitcan him" things?

 

[Some Idiot]

How much better? Two runs per innings? Five?

Or is this one of those "I don't like the bloke so I'll find any excuse to shitcan him" things?

Ask the Cricket Australia Selectors. Phil Jacques was one who also fell victim to not being up to the professional standard of fielding, so he's not the first player and he won't be the last.

 

[Belnakor]

That is the side I would seriously look at but important to remember that Maxwell has only played 1 day and T20 cricket in the last 18 months and will have to make a big adjustment to his game for test cricket and I would doubt they would even select him at this stage.

he didn't have a huge lead up for the Indian series.

Maxy has faced the same bowlers at ODI/T20 and done well.

I'd be backing him. At no.6.

 

[Voice of the G]

Bryce Street? Has the name and look about him.

Similar thoughts,always remember his 345 in a Futures game a couple of years back and in the shield has shown he can stick around.

 

[big_e]

Ask the Cricket Australia Selectors. Phil Jacques was one who also fell victim to not being up to the professional standard of fielding, so he's not the first player and he won't be the last.

Yeah, nah.

"Jaques had been given the opening role after the retirement of Justin Langer, and he looked set for a long career in the baggy green. However, he was ruled out of the 2008 tour of India due to a long-standing back injury that required surgery, and he never quite returned to his peak form - or to the Australia side. In the past three seasons in Australia, he has averaged 35.17 in first-class cricket."

Anyway, I wasn't talking about Phil Jaques. You said Khawaja needs to be better with the bat, and you still haven't said how much better.

For the record, I think Khawaja should have opened this series, and I said it before the team was selected. He has a very good record opening in tests, and in the absence of Warner for the first few tests, having an experienced and capable opener would have been beneficial to the side.

 

[Voice of the G]

he didn't have a huge lead up for the Indian series.

Maxy has faced the same bowlers at ODI/T20 and done well.

I'd be backing him. At no.6.

The scheduling is terrible.The test squad leaves for SA 24 Feb and the T20 squad's 1st game is in NZ on 22 Feb.The only shield game before those dates is a Vict v Qld game 12 Feb.Would all players be available for that game ?

 

[Run n Spread]

Harris =replacement did ok in 2nd dig bit Pucovski comes back could give him another go if PUC goes to 5
Warner safe for now and touring form a worry but over 30s and needs replacement
Labus safe
Smith safe
Wade goneski not enough to persist
Green a long term investment may need to be dropped to refine but safe for now
Paine hard did enough in the Brisbane to justify his spot short term but is one of the older 30+ brigade and I reckon others could produce similar
Cummins safe
Starc out of form not first choice
Hazlewood safe but could still rotate
Lyon should not be safe. But it's a conundrum like the batting. If you're playing a spinner who would do better

Potential ins
Pocovski must
McDermott jhy rich Renshaw long term view
Short term Sweepson especially with sub C I 2022 Maxwell give him shield SA won't happen Nesser ply him ffs Pattinson if fit Is first choice

 

[Snarls Barkley]

I can’t see too many changes occurring. Most of them have runs in the bank or are kids who showed enough and will get more chances, Wade being the only exception who will definitely be gone.

Don’t know who takes the number five spot. It doesn’t make a lot of sense to drop a guy for a technical flaw and then bring him back in before having a chance to work on it but Head would still be in the box seat. Henriques could come in as another stop gap but I would prefer looking longer into the future than that option. McDermott probably the best option for those outside the squad.

Warner and Pucovski are fine as the opening pair. I don’t trust Harris at all but can’t see any better backup options around, so think he gets that spot by default. I’m not a big Paine guy but there is no chance he is getting replaced. If he didn’t make runs probably but he did bat quite well.

Lyon and Starc will get chances to redeem themselves. I imagine that Pattinson if fit will get first crack in South Africa ahead of Starc but they’ll all stay in the squad and get more opportunities.

 

[Some Idiot]

Yeah, nah.

"Jaques had been given the opening role after the retirement of Justin Langer, and he looked set for a long career in the baggy green. However, he was ruled out of the 2008 tour of India due to a long-standing back injury that required surgery, and he never quite returned to his peak form - or to the Australia side. In the past three seasons in Australia, he has averaged 35.17 in first-class cricket."

Anyway, I wasn't talking about Phil Jaques. You said Khawaja needs to be better with the bat, and you still haven't said how much better.

For the record, I think Khawaja should have opened this series, and I said it before the team was selected. He has a very good record opening in tests, and in the absence of Warner for the first few tests, having an experienced and capable opener would have been beneficial to the side.

He made 94 on his ODI debut and got dropped for a returning Simon Katich. Fielding not being up to scratch was among the reported reasons.

Jaques let down by fielding - Hohns

Phil Jaques has been told by Trevor Hohns, the chairman of selectors, to improve his fielding

www.espncricinfo.com

I completely agree that Khawaja would have been a lot better than what we went with and I would have much preferred it. My opinion is however irrelevant.

The fact is he is poor in the field which is problematic for Cricket Australia as they have high fielding standards that he does not reach. That means he needs to be outstanding with the bat to make up for it, and he has been at times, hence he has had a fairly good career in spite of it.

 

[M Malice]

Don't post on here much at all but love my Test Cricket.

Wont happen but this would be my 11 for the upcoming tour of South Africa and potentially the Ashes at the end of the year.

David Warner
Will Pucovski
Marnus Labuschange
Steve Smith(C)
Matt Renshaw
Cameron Green
Alex Carey
Michael Neser/Jye Richardon.
Pat Cummins
Nathan Lyon/Mitch Swepson/Adam Zampa.
Josh Hazelwood

The media keep repeating that Paine is a very good keeper, don't see it myself and his captaincy is nothing to write home about either. Unfortunately the GOAT has looked well down, he has enough wickets in the bank to be given the first shot though. Starc has had good patches but not consistent enough, he releases pressure continuously.

If Smith's cards have been stamped never to captain again I have no idea who would take the job, Cummins/Carey/Labuschange???

 

[Snarls Barkley]

Yeah, nah.

"Jaques had been given the opening role after the retirement of Justin Langer, and he looked set for a long career in the baggy green. However, he was ruled out of the 2008 tour of India due to a long-standing back injury that required surgery, and he never quite returned to his peak form - or to the Australia side. In the past three seasons in Australia, he has averaged 35.17 in first-class cricket."

Anyway, I wasn't talking about Phil Jaques. You said Khawaja needs to be better with the bat, and you still haven't said how much better.

For the record, I think Khawaja should have opened this series, and I said it before the team was selected. He has a very good record opening in tests, and in the absence of Warner for the first few tests, having an experienced and capable opener would have been beneficial to the side.

It was always going to be hard to justify a Khawaja inclusion, although he probably would’ve performed as well as any of the openers did in hindsight.

He averaged 28 in his last three series (9 tests) against India, Sri Lanka and England, inflated by a second innings 100no in a game we probably should’ve enforced the follow on. Then after getting dropped he made 202 at an average of 18.36 in last seasons Sheffield Shield. He hadn’t had a flash start to this season until he made a century in the last Shield game.

Would’ve been a big call to ignore his last 30 odd innings of sub par form and bring him back in after one good knock but he probably wouldn’t have performed any worse than Burns or Harris. The fact that he wasn’t in the Australian A teams for the warm up games suggests that his international days are over

 

[Voice of the G]

It was always going to be hard to justify a Khawaja inclusion, although he probably would’ve performed as well as any of the openers did in hindsight.

He averaged 28 in his last three series (9 tests) against India, Sri Lanka and England, inflated by a second innings 100no in a game we probably should’ve enforced the follow on. Then after getting dropped he made 202 at an average of 18.36 in last seasons Sheffield Shield. He hadn’t had a flash start to this season until he made a century in the last Shield game.

Would’ve been a big call to ignore his last 30 odd innings of sub par form and bring him back in after one good knock but he probably wouldn’t have performed any worse than Burns or Harris. The fact that he wasn’t in the Australian A teams for the warm up games suggests that his international days are over

Are we being a little hasty in dropping Harris after 1 test.Failed in the 1st innings and got 30 odd in the 2nd.I think would be on the tour to SA or if we are going to drop him perhaps a new opener like Street should be with the squad.