Who Plays in The Ashes

[Adelaide Hawk]

There is no future in Marsh and he's been given enough opportunities at test level to say he's not up to it imo. If we are talking about form this summer though Maxwell hasn't been terrible and he has form from India + I think the way he plays could make him an ideal attacking no 6 in Australian conditions. The Marsh decision makes no sense to me. I hope he makes runs because if he makes it to Melbourne without any runs on the board there's a good chance he gets booed onto the pitch.

On a broader level the selectors have done a terrible job. They should have factored in how much controversy the selections would cause for likely very little gain (if Paine and Marsh are better than Maxwell and Neville then it's not by much). I haven't read a positive article about the selections which puts added pressure on Marsh, Paine as individuals and must be fairly unsettling for the whole team.

This is how I feel as well. I'm all for dropping players for not performing, but they need to be replaced by players who are actually doing better. Marsh is not doing any better than Maxwell, he's not as good a fielder, and he can't bowl at all. Mystifying decision. I'm also in favour of bringing in a player who is loaded with future possibilities, but neither Marsh nor Paine fill this category. Maxwell at least deserves a chance to perform in Australian conditions.

As for selecting a wicketkeeper who has only played one shield game, a game where he didn't even keep wicket, is also a mystery. Going for a future prospect in Carey would make more sense than this. I'm an Aussie, and will be hoping for the two players to perform, but if they fail and Australia find themselves 1 Test down in the series, then the selectors should have to be held accountable.

 

[funk44]

They lost their minds sticking with Wade. He simply cannot keep.

You need a good wicket keeper for a test match.

Paine helps our chacnces of winning.

Paine has kept wicket in 3 shield games over the last 2 years... So while I agree with your statement re Wades ability with the gloves, selecting Paine as the keeper over Wade or Nevill is one of the most bizarre decisions in recent memory

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Why not?

Because short sighted panic selections series to series are just selectors trying to keep their jobs ahead of the good of aust cricket and lead to masses of contradictory decisions (for eg one policy re Renshaw/bancroft and contradicting it re Paine). Get a clear coherent consistent accountable selection policy short and long term and the results will come anyway IMO. Unfortunately we have nothing like that currently.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

The melts are amusing. Bancroft for Renshaw is fair on form, Marsh and Maxwell are hardly poles apart, would Wade or Nevill actually have produced more than Paine is likely to? I doubt it. Back in the side and let's smash the Poms.

If you cant see the contradiction in having FC form as the reasoning re Renshaw Bancroft and then completely throwing FC form out the window to pick Paine who basically doesn't play FC cricket (and i am not a Wade fan Wade is entirely beside the point in this debate) then i really can't help you.

 

[Bad Horse]

Our selectors are completely lost. Need a complete clean out of the panel and some actual direction. We are going to be creamed.

 

[kidgorgeous]

When England retain the Ashes 3-1 on our decks, can the selectors get the Khyber Pass? WTF is their thought process in selecting Tim Paine? Shaun Marsh? Reading today's Hun I nearly fell off my chair when I read it. If Russell Gould is correct in that Mark Waugh didn't approach Maxwell during the latest Shield match that Victoria played, yet Renshaw had coach Lehmann and um, 'high performance manager' Pat Howard, then it is a disgrace and Wauch should be given his marching orders.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

Agree with what you say re: Marsh. I would've stuck with Rensaw (with Bancroft at 6) but it's an understandable decision. I was pretty sure Bancroft cemented his spot and it came down to Renshaw v Maxwell with marsh a distant third in the running, but obviously the selectors didn't think that way.

Paine... unless he drops some catches which cost a century (or multiple centuries) which in turn cost us a match then I don't think this decision is going to decide the Ashes. Even if Paine averages 20 with the bat there is nothing to suggest any of the others would definitely do better anyway.

People love to pin stuff on selectors but the reality is all the players in the up-for-grabs positions you'd more or less expect to perform to a similar level.

The far more pressing concerns than decisions over fringe players for the Australian team is the form of the cemented batsmen, which is a little bit iffy (without being dire). Warner and Handscomb both averaging about 30 in the shield warm ups and since the tour of India finished Smith has been a bit less spectacular than we've become accustomed to, even though he is still scoring at a reasonably solid rate.

I think we were expected to see those sort of guys warm up in the shield with mountains of runs and confidence to their names. 18 innings from those 3 has yielded just 1 ton and 4 fifty-plus scores. I'm not sure that is what CA envisioned when they penned in 3 shield games prior to the Ashes.

I think the bigger issue is that people will stick fat with the team if they can see there is a clear plan and we are going somewhere and likely to get there.

Picking blokes like Paine in particular whether it has a big bearing on the series outcome or not shows there is no plan and they basically are just shifting deckchairs on the titanic every few months. I think the selectors will start to find pretty soon people will lose faith with them if they haven't already and that's when there will be real consequences.

 

[Bad Horse]

When England retain the Ashes 3-1 on our decks, can the selectors get the Khyber Pass? WTF is their thought process in selecting Tim Paine? Shaun Marsh? Reading today's Hun I nearly fell off my chair when I read it. If Russell Gould is correct in that Mark Waugh didn't approach Maxwell during the latest Shield match that Victoria played, yet Renshaw had coach Lehmann and um, 'high performance manager' Pat Howard, then it is a disgrace and Wauch should be given his marching orders.

Waugh should already have been given his marching orders over the whole Maddinson fiasco.

 

[kidgorgeous]

Our selectors are completely lost. Need a complete clean out of the panel and some actual direction. We are going to be creamed.

Shane Warne absolutely correct in today's Hun. England are more settled and they would be oozing confidence. The Aussie bowlers are going to pushing the proverbial uphill defending small targets.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

https://t.co/heWasIKinZ

Good read from a UK Sky Sports journalist about our three inclusions.

Has he actually done some research. Paine can't be considered the best keeper in the country when he doesn't even keep for his own state team (who are dismal).

 

[Hamez]

Has he actually done some research. Paine can't be considered the best keeper in the country when he doesn't even keep for his own state team (who are dismal).

Did you read the article?

Tim Paine wasn't even picked by Tasmania at the start of the season, last played a Test in 2010 and has only scored one first-class century in 158 innings. Hardly a ringing endorsement for a place in an Ashes XI.

Bancroft would've been considered for the gloves as he is Western Australia's current keeper but it makes sense to allow him to throw all of his energy into the crucial opening position. That left Peter Nevill, who can certainly feel aggrieved when he looks at his first-class record next to Paine's.

In 133 innings he has nine centuries and his average of 39 is over 10 runs higher than his Tasmanian rival's. Having said all that, according to Chairman of Selectors Trevor Hohns, Paine is "regarded as the best gloveman in the country". If that's the case, then is Paine's selection such a punt?

Australia are hoping to blow away England with three very talented fast bowlers and for that to happen they will need someone to hold on to the nicks. Also, Nevill averages just 22 in his 17 Tests, so how much could you really expect him to have a significant impact with the bat? Looking at it that way, you might as well have someone in there who can make the biggest difference behind the stumps

 

[funk44]

Did you read the article?

How can Paine be considered the 'best glovesman in the country' when Tasmania don't even consider him up to scratch?

If they wanted a pure keeper then Alex Carey is the obvious choice

 

[Schraderbrau]

They lost their minds sticking with Wade. He simply cannot keep.

You need a good wicket keeper for a test match.

Paine helps our chacnces of winning.

neville is a good keeper ffs.

Paine doesn't help out chances of winning because now our tail begins at no 7.

 

[thejockey]

A few thoughts
- good to see someone get selected after bashing the door down . Think Bancroft can be a long term addition into the line up
- personally would have backed Renshaw in to perform in the first two tests , but his poor form made it hard to keep him in . Will be back a better player
- Maxwell very stiff , didn't do a heap wrong and while he didn't shoot the lights out in the shield games was far from poor . In fact had almost equivalent form to his replacement
- Wade/Neville seem done now as the selectors have nil faith in them. Paine appears to be the preferred stop gap before Carey is ready
- its a huge concern we have gone back to a 34 year old . I personally don't mind Marsh but he is a good player at test level nothing more. Would have preferred to retain Maxwell, bat Bancroft at 6 ( meaning retain Renshaw) or blood a player at 6

Last week I was quite confident in Australia winning . Not so much now and its not really the personal .
We now seem very unsettled almost confused as to what our best line up should, while the Poms almost seem good to go

Very much looking forward to the series

 

[Schraderbrau]

Did you read the article?

the guy approached with the presumption that Neville he is a below average keeper. That is simply not the case, Neville is a very handy keeper. Either the author is being disingenuous to support his argument or doesn't know what he's talking about. Either way its poor work.

 

[The Passenger]

I think the bigger issue is that people will stick fat with the team if they can see there is a clear plan and we are going somewhere and likely to get there.

Picking blokes like Paine in particular whether it has a big bearing on the series outcome or not shows there is no plan and they basically are just shifting deckchairs on the titanic every few months. I think the selectors will start to find pretty soon people will lose faith with them if they haven't already and that's when there will be real consequences.

100% correct.

Pretty much said the same here earlier today in the thread about Tim Paine.

https://www.bigfooty.com/forum/threads/tim-paine.224956/page-2#post-53455129

 

[Charlie Pannam]

WA watchers how do you rate Bancrofts keeping?
If the Aussies go down the road of a batsman that can keep sometime in the future is he a better option than Hanscombe.

 

[PoopingHindi]

i wonder what Ed Cowan thinks about our selection policy?
he's too old to play Sheffield Sheild yet Marsh who is only a year younger can play for Australia.
Cowan averaged 73 in Shield cricket last year, Bancroft averaged 28

im not saying he deserves a Baggy Green but he should've at least been given an opportunity to prove himself.
our selection policy makes no sense. its not even a policy, its just picking random people on a whim (see Nic Maddinson).

 

[funk44]

i wonder what Ed Cowan thinks about our selection policy?
he's too old to play Sheffield Sheild yet Marsh who is only a year younger can play for Australia.
Cowan averaged 73 in Shield cricket last year, Bancroft averaged 28

im not saying he deserves a Baggy Green but he should've at least been given an opportunity to prove himself.
our selection policy makes no sense. its not even a policy, its just picking random people on a whim (see Nic Maddinson).

From all reports Steve Smith doesn't get along with Cowan and if the captain doesn't like you it's basically curtains for your international career (hodge and ponting), irrespective of your domestic form

 

[Gough]

I suspect Boof doesn’t think much of him either. His last Test was Lehmann's first as coach.

 

[Kram]

From all reports Steve Smith doesn't get along with Cowan and if the captain doesn't like you it's basically curtains for your international career (hodge and ponting), irrespective of your domestic form

Just lol.

 

[Adelaide Hawk]

I suspect Boof doesn’t think much of him either. His last Test was Lehmann's first as coach.

Cowan's paying for that dreadful shot he played 1st ball in his final Test match when he misread the length of the delivery. I agree though, I've always considered Cowan to be a quality player, and to not select him for NSW is a joke. I also think Cowan tends to err on the side of honesty in a game which thrives on political bullshit.

 

[kidgorgeous]

From all reports Steve Smith doesn't get along with Cowan and if the captain doesn't like you it's basically curtains for your international career (hodge and ponting), irrespective of your domestic form

And this is where the selectors and coach step in. The captain should have no say in selection, particularly those he doesn't like. Smith should just captain the side on the ground and then shut up.

 

[Pure_Ownage]

From all reports Steve Smith doesn't get along with Cowan and if the captain doesn't like you it's basically curtains for your international career (hodge and ponting), irrespective of your domestic form

If that is true (and i would be wary of assuming it without further evidence) then smith needs to be told to get his beak out of selection or get himself out of the team (and i like smith).

 

[Gough]

If your team is winning you can play favourites. Smith can't play favourites.