Australia should keep faith in Mitchell Marsh against India

BEING vice-captain doesn’t make Mitchell Marsh untouchable but it does show that the belief in his ability should not be washed away by one dismal series, writes Ben Horne.

Marsh’s struggles are symptomatic of Australia’s problems. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

• Langer offers Marsh a lifeline
• Player ratings: The good, the bad and the Marshes
• Craddock: Australia have no excuses

AFTER just two Tests as Aussie vice-captain Mitchell Marsh is becoming vividly aware that the position does not get him a gold pass into the team.

The batting order is like a house of cards and it desperately needs anchormen.

Marsh was supposed to be one of those after making such great progress last summer, but when he needed to stand up as a senior batsman in the UAE, he looked befuddled coming in so high up the order.

As it stands right now, Aaron Finch is the only certainty for the first Test against India at Adelaide Oval.

But to highlight the disarray Australia finds itself in, Finch’s endorsement doesn’t come with a guarantee that he’ll keep his place as an opener.

Marsh’s struggles are symptomatic of Australia’s problems. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

Coach Justin Langer was impressed by the debuts of Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head, but with four rounds of Sheffield Shield cricket to come before the first Test, neither has done enough to safeguard themselves should other standouts rise from the pack.

Langer admits his most glaring problem is the absolute dearth of options to bat in the spearhead batting positions of opener, No.3 and 4 that David Warner and Steve Smith held together for so long.

He can’t trust the Marsh brothers that high again, Usman Khawaja is no certainty to be fit for December 6 and Finch has struggled in the past against the swinging new ball.

The majority of candidates shouldn’t be batting higher than No.5 or 6, and that means when the music stops on the Marsh brothers, Labuschagne and Head, there can’t be seats left for all of them.

Aaron Finch appears one of the few certainties for Australia. (AP Photo/Kamran Jebreili)

However, despite the groundswell of pressure building around him, Mitchell Marsh should play the first Test against India.

The vice-captaincy doesn’t give him special exemptions, but it does show that a sound investment was made in him for reasons that can’t be washed away by one dismal series.

Marsh’s form slump is alarming but not to the same degree as his brother Shaun’s.

Mitchell’s career average of 26 from 30 matches might not be good enough to play Test cricket, but his numbers need to be broken down with a wider context in mind.

Since his recall to the Test team nine matches ago, Marsh has averaged 35 with two hundreds and a 50.

Marsh must start to justify faith.

It’s not a mind-blowing improvement but from the low base he started with, dumping him now after one isolated subpar tour would be too hasty.

But the vice-captaincy won’t protect Marsh for much longer if he can’t prove in the first couple of Test matches of the summer that he has turned a corner.

He is even more vulnerable because he’s in a job-share arrangement where co-vice Josh Hazlewood will be in the team anyway.

Cricket Australia hierarchy made a point of emphasising that Marsh’s appointment was in no way an anointing of a future captain. They knew he was a long way from even establishing himself in the side.

The all-rounder could have a problem on his hands if West Australian teammate Marcus Stoinis can build on his season-opening 80 against Victoria.

Stoinis would have got the jump on Marsh last summer had his career not been put on hold for far more important things, when he lost his father to cancer.

Shane Warne’s tweeting out of prospective Australian Test teams over recent days has been difficult to follow, but the randomness of his whims aren’t a world away from the game of guess-who being played by the National Selection Panel.

Warne’s suggestion that D’Arcy Short should open the batting with Aaron Finch for the first Test sounds farcical when he’s never scored a first-class hundred and averages 25.

But in this unprecedented crisis for Australian cricket, who can say Warne is wrong?

BEN HORNE’S FIRST TEST TEAM

Matt Renshaw: Didn’t play in the UAE but couldn’t be more certain to play first Test.

Aaron Finch: May shift to middle-order if Khawaja is fit for Adelaide.

Usman Khawaja: Will CA require he play a practice game post-surgery?

Travis Head: Next to Finch, Head is the most likely debutant to hold his place

Marnus Labuschagne: Needs a Shield hundred to be sure

Mitchell Marsh: Worth another chance despite pressure rising

Tim Paine: Biggest issue will be coping with unprecedented spotlight

Pat Cummins: Tracking well in his recovery from injury

Mitchell Starc: His left hamstring strain will impact preparations

Nathan Lyon: The one constant in the Australian team

Josh Hazlewood: Leadership crucial for new vice-captain

THE RED-HOT CHALLENGERS

Peter Handscomb: Test average of 43 and back in form

Will Pucovski: Hottest talent in Australia fresh from a double century

Marcus Stoinis: All-round option with strong one-day international record

Chris Lynn: Says he wants to play Test cricket, can’t be discounted if fit

Matthew Wade (specialist batsman): Averages 38 with 12 first-class hundreds

Glenn Maxwell: Unluckiest player not to get a guernsey in the UAE

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Originally published as Australia should keep faith in Mitchell Marsh against India