Australia’s scientific approach to cricket is the reason behind its poor form against South Africa
SOMETIMES in modern-day sport you can over-complicate things and it seems Australia has done just that, writes Graeme Smith.
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SOMETIMES in modern-day sport you can over-complicate things and it seems Australia’s scientific approach to managing their players has left them unsure of what their best attack is.
Obviously some injuries have forced them to manage the workloads, but I think it’s important your best bowlers play as much as they can, especially if they’re at an age where they’re still learning the art.
International sport is about skill and mental strength, but confidence is such a key factor.
Look at someone like South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada, who has played consistently for a period of time now. He’s young, only 21, but he’s fronted up the Proteas’ attack. Everyone keeps thinking there must be a lot of pressure on him, but he just keeps taking it in his stride.
And it was the valuable lessons he has learned through playing consistently that benefited him when Dale Steyn was injured in the Perth Test.
Even at such a young age he had the ball reverse swinging, and that was because he’s got substance behind him and confidence from performing well.
If you’re playing one game here, two games there, it’s very difficult to find that self-belief and grow to a point where you actually feel settled.
The start of the season has been extremely tough for Australian cricket. They rested Steve Smith from the ODIs in Sri Lanka, then took a depleted bowling attack to South Africa and got hammered 5-0 and now they’ve lost the opening Test in Perth.
South Africa had been through a tough time but that 5-0 drubbing of Australia in the ODI series has given them such confidence knowing they’ve started the season well. They have brought this self-belief into this series.
Surely Josh Hazlewood should have been in South Africa, while with Mitchell Starc the more he bowls, the better he bowls. I don’t understand how he was taken out of a Sheffield Shield game before the Test series.
I think sometimes the simple way is the best way. You want to keep players on the park, you want to win games, you want your best players playing all the time. To me it’s actually quite simple — if a player has a niggle then he needs to rest, otherwise your best players should be playing all the time no matter the format.
It’s the logistics of Cricket Australia’s rotation policy that Steve Smith is trying to understand, while at the same time working out the man-management of his players and deciding what style his team will play.
Having been a young captain myself, Steve needs the support to grow. He probably needs some good leadership around him in the team because he doesn’t have a lot of experienced players.
He needs people who can help guide him and provide some leadership for him, but it probably doesn’t help that David Warner is coming across as a guy who is motivated to take the captaincy. And I do believe Warner wants to captain Australia.
The other thing Steve really has got to improve is his use of Nathan Lyon. He hasn’t used Lyon well at all and that is causing him a tactical nightmare.
The criticism of Lyon in Sri Lanka was bad, so he must definitely be feeling sensitive because he hasn’t bowled well, but I don’t think he’s been used properly. Steve needs to embrace Lyon. When he backs him and gives him confidence, it will be a lot easier tactically for him. He’s definitely coming across as a captain who is reluctant to use his spinner.
South Africa, meanwhile, made a very good tactical decision to play spinner Keshav Maharaj and I thought Faf du Plessis used him well.
I’d like to see Maharaj remain in the team for the second Test and I’d imagine you’ll see Morne Morkel in Hobart today. When I played, Morne was always a great asset to have in Australia where the wickets can get flat because I think he’s an outstanding flat-wicket bowler. He’s got natural variation with his bounce and height.
I do believe we have the bowling to knock Australia over, especially with the lack of confidence in their line-up. Once you get one or two out, you can get going and make inroads.
Australia don’t want to work hard for their runs. They want to hit boundaries, they want the game to move forward, they want to be positive all the time and they’re not prepared to soak up pressure and work hard for their runs.
So if South Africa build some big scores, I’m confident we’ll be able to take 20 wickets.
Originally published as Australia’s scientific approach to cricket is the reason behind its poor form against South Africa
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