With Warner’s last Test just days away there’s been lots of conjecture about how Australia’s Top 6 will line up.
Two schools of thought seem to exist:
Replace Warner with another opener - Bancroft, Harris or Renshaw. Surely Bancroft has to be the best option here given the runs he’s made over the the last few Shield seasons. Would also be great to see Bancroft replace Warner given it was Warner’s influence that saw Bancroft get removed from the Test side
Pick Australia’s best 6 batters and shuffle the batting line up. That would see most likely Cam Green come back in but where? Do they throw him in to open? Or bat Green at 4, where he averages 60 in Shield cricket, pushing Marnus and Smudge up a spot? Alternatively could Head play a similar aggressive opener role to Warner and Green then slots in at 5?
With Warner all but gone, hopefully Candice disappears too! The Backpage will be a much more enjoyable show to watch without her.
Harris and Bancroft are playing domestic cricket for a reason and that is quite understandable when both have serious flaws with deliveries just outside off stump and nipping away , and I’m afraid there’s more than a dozen world class other country quicks desperately hoping these two get the nod
Renshaw wasn’t given as many chances and his game has changed - can bat in the middle order as well
Then there’s old sleepy - Green , this guy has talent to spare but there’s just no ignition coil
Don’t mess with Head up top - he’s a gem at 5 or 6
Can’t see how Aust will or can go with another plodder in their top 4 like a Bancroft or Renshaw…surely it’s Head replacing Warner…like for like shot maker…Head has another 4 years before he falls off the cliff like Warner has .
Head and Marsh are too similar in style batting at 5 n 6. Smith is a problem, looks more preoccupied these days with preserving his wicket then scoring runs. If Green is in Aust best six batsmen after Warner retires, then he needs to come in…
Have Head and Marsh book end the Labuschagne, Smith and Green snail trail by batting at 2 and 6 resoectively…once Smith goes, get Green to 4 and get Hardie into 5…nothing like a WA middle order of Green, Hardie and Marsh…and once Marsh goes, get Wyllie in at 6 to start his test career before he moves uo the order over time.
Disagree Freezin, what does Bancroft have to do to deserve a chance? What’s Head done since the World Cup? Been a flop and Cameron Green has serious flaws in his technique and mental side of his batting.
I’d say this is more Cummins driven wanting to keep the boys club together. Bancroft is seen as an outsider and he was a relative baby of the Australian team when he was Warner’s guinea pig to scuff up the ball with sandpaper. Not hard to work out who was the mastermind behind it.
Warner got a chance to redeem himself as did Smith for being a piss weak captain but Bancroft has been hung out to dry. Just appalling stuff. No wonder people in WA don’t go to Test matches.
DD, Bancroft has a test average of 26 and a first class average of 39…can think of a few flaws in Bancroft’s batting technique…never said he didn’t deserve a crack…just think until Uzzie retires, Aust will want a Warner like replacement…which Head is, someone who can keep the run rate over 4.
I agree re Green, thus why he should bat 5 instead of opening, and then 4, when Smith pulls the pin…Green at 24, has a shed load more upside than Bancroft who is 31…but got no probs with Bancroft getting the opening gig, just giving a reason as to why he won’t…happy to eat humble pie
Freeze I think Bancroft’s test average from how many years ago is irrelevant. His first class average last year was 59.06 as the leading Shield player and is leading the way again this sraso6at an average of 55.88. He picks himself at those averages with no one else doing better.
And I don’t know but I’m guessing he has been scoring at a higher clip than earlier in his career so I think you might be a tad unfair labelling him as a plodder. Just think it’s setting a bad example if the selectors ignore his form over the last two seasons and don’t reward it.
I’m sick of hearing Harris’s name mentioned, how old is he? I guess because he is now a Victorian cricketer he gets more cred. Now that’s a batsman that’s nothing more than a grafter.
One thing we can all agree on is Harris should be nowhere near being selected as Warner’s replacement…which sadly almost guarantees him the spot knowing the dopey duo of Bailey & McDonald!
I have been saying for years he wasnt a Test openers bootlace but they kept selecting him and he continually failed.
He moved over to VIC to play on that absolute road at the Junction Oval to make his numbers better than they are in reality.
The other thing that has Green, Bancroft & Renshaw well ahead of Harris is their respective fielding.
Warner has been the designated first slip for some time now and Renshaw & Bancroft are both very good slippers, whilst Green is brilliant in the gully and M.Marsh (who fields in the slips for WA) could move in to the cordon to accommodate Green back to the gully.
Harris is an ordinary fielder and has to be hidden when playing and we already have 2 average fields in Head & Khawaja to accommodate but at least they score runs occasionally!!!
Warner has confirmed what most of us thought - he was gone after the Ashes but various parts of CA just didn’t have a shred of inner fortitude to make the call
It’s almost farcial Monte Python-esque they may as well just keep playing that potato now and make it two generations skipped , hey why not open up with wife , she runs everything else it seems
CA is an open joke really
Pretty obvious Warner has a dossier of some sort, which the CA don’t want the public to see, regarding sandpapergate. No doubt when Candace writes her life story, it will all come out them…I wonder if Warner will write one?
Seems like Aust will have a repeat of the Chappell, Lillee, Marsh then Warne, McGrath & Langer retirements when the likes of Uzzie, Smith, Starc, Lyon etc follow Warner into the sunset.
Hopefully the next generation of potential 20 somethings -
Openers: Hunt, Ward, Wyllie, Dixon
3 - 6: Green, Hardie, McSweeney, Kellaway, Davies
Fast bowlers: Richardson, Morris, Johnson, Buckingham, Perry, O’Reilly
Spin: Murphy, Rocchiccioli, Sangha
Are all quick learners and ready to hit the ground running.
The youngest player in our current test side is 29,Laba.When Greens not playing.
Everyone else over 30 years old.Warners replacement will be a younger ,from outside the box.Not what we all think it should be.
Nsw Woke Brigade will choose the replacement. Plenty of time to plan during the raining Sydney test.
there’s some talk of a like for like replacement in Jake Fraser-McGurk too
but regardless there is an age grouping that has the potential to have mass retirements at the one time
that isn’t good
According to News.com.au, news has been leaked that Bancroft has been left out in the cold and Smith will open and make way for Green to come into the team. Disgraceful decision if true as it’s a case of the tail wagging the dog again, the tail being the NSW cartel.
Renshaw may end up carrying the drinks if they go ahead with the plan to open with Smith and slot Green in at number 4.
One thing is for sure. Cam Bancroft could make another 10000 runs in shield cricket but he won’t play for Australia again. Its ironical that the two ring leaders during the “sand paper” saga have been punished and forgiven and actually feted as heroes, yet the junior member is still carrying the can and suffering the consequences as much for his statement that the bowling cartel knew all about the tampering as for anything else.
Mike I think it was Kim Hughes on 720 the other day who talked about the petulance shown consistently by Smith and Labuschagne whenever they are out, they are never out in their opinion. They can’t believe they got out even when it’s obvious and stand their ground looking around and when they eventually walk off they are still looking back and shaking their heads like they’ve been hard done by.
No one has the balls to tell those two to pull their heads in as it’s a bad look for sportsmanship and the game and Australia’s reputation.
I have lost all respect for Smith. As far as I’m concerned he is a selfish cricketer and at 34 years of age is desperately trying to extend his career as far as he can.
I make it seven New South Welshmen in the Australian team.
Smith, Cummins, Labuschagne, Lyon, Stark, Hazelwood, Khawaja was originally from NSW and Warner now retired from test cricket actually makes 8.
It’s not so much a problem there are 8 world class test cricketers in the team, it’s the control they seem to have over selection including who is the team coach or manager.
Smith, Warner, Cummins and Labuschagne all had something to say about who replaces Warner. It’s a national disgrace and I wouldn’t go to watch them if you paid for my ticket, air fare, accommodation and a five star lunch.
Keep your chin up Cameron and continue to embarrass these flogs. Their day will come.
Labuschagne is from QLD DD, but yes 7 of the 11 who regularly play in the current Test side are from NSW (Khawaja now with QLD but originally from NSW).
With Warner now retired im surprised they are not pumping up a Daniel Hughes or some other NSW batsman (although Mark Waugh on commentary did pump D.Hughes’s tyres up)
Personally, I don’t believe Cam Bancroft’s non-selection is any way related to whether he upset any of his Test teammates.
“Sandpapergate” occurred in late-March 2018, yet Bancroft played two Tests in England in August 2019, when Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon and Mitch Starc were all in the Ashes touring party.
In my humble opinion, if there was a massive rift between Bancroft and the NSW quartet, he wouldn’t have been selected for that tour.
Given the potential Cam Green has shown and the fact that he offers an extra bowling option, I think the selectors are hellbent on reincluding him in the Test line-up.
Whether one is a fan of Steve Smith or not, his form - while not fantastic - is such that he can’t be dropped from the team, so the only option is that either he or Green opens the batting.
[quote=“Archie Duda Goal Machine post=233174 userid=2436”]Personally, I don’t believe Cam Bancroft’s non-selection is any way related to whether he upset any of his Test teammates.
“Sandpapergate” occurred in late-March 2018, yet Bancroft played two Tests in England in August 2019, when Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon and Mitch Starc were all in the Ashes touring party.
In my humble opinion, if there was a massive rift between Bancroft and the NSW quartet, he wouldn’t have been selected for that tour.
Given the potential Cam Green has shown and the fact that he offers an extra bowling option, I think the selectors are hellbent on reincluding him in the Test line-up.
Whether one is a fan of Steve Smith or not, his form - while not fantastic - is such that he can’t be dropped from the team, so the only option is that either he or Green opens the batting.
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If there is a rift between Bancroft and the bowlers it would stem from a 2021 interview that Cam gave in which he strongly implied that Cummins, Starc, Hazlewood and Lyon were aware of the ball tampering despite the fact that all 4 of them had strongly denied being in on it. Shortly afterwards the 4 bowlers issued a public statement once again denying knowledge of the plan and deploring the innuendo they had been subjected to.
Also Cummins was not captain when Bancroft was last selected in 2019, so it is likely there has been some intervention somewhere in the name of “team harmony”. Bancroft has scored double the number of runs as Renshaw in the Sheffield Shield in the last 2 years so I cannot believe that he has been omitted solely for “cricketing reasons” as Bailey has said.
Good point, Mike, I erroneously thought the interview was soon after Sandpapergate.
Given the interview was in 2021, I’m now inclined to agree that it might have been a factor in Cam Bancroft’s non-selection.
That said, I still think Cam Green’s versatility and youth compared to Bancroft might have swayed the selectors.
Australian cricket has several recent examples of blokes who scored plenty of Sheffield Shield runs but played few, if any, Test matches.
The names of Jamie Cox (0 Tests), Jamie Siddons (0 Tests), Brad Hodge (6 Tests), Martin Love (5 Tests) and Michael Di Venuto (0 Tests) all spring to mind.
One minute folk are whinging the Aust team is too old…with only one member under 30…yet folk are up in arms because Bancroft at 31 didn’t get picked?? Sounds like the selectors or the NSW mafia have gone for Aust best 6 batsman…one being Cam Green at 24, who surely has more upside then a 31 year old?
Would of thought it makes sense to have the reserve batsman aged under 30…especially with all this concern that Aust test team are going to fall of the cliff simultaneously because they are over 30 years of age.
