Duck, duck, 17: Test hopefuls fail as McSweeney digs in

Teenage prodigy Sam Konstas squandered a golden chance to impress national selectors by departing for a third-ball duck in Australia A’s clash with India A on Thursday as Cameron Bancroft and Marcus Harris also failed to impress.

A day that had been billed as a battle between four contenders for the opening spot ended with three of the quartet failing to make a strong case for inclusion in the team that will play in the first Test against India in Perth on November 22.

After the early carnage that saw Konstas and Bancroft both failing to score a run and Harris mustering just 17, South Australian captain Nathan McSweeney compiled an unbeaten innings of 29 from 109 deliveries before the day’s play ended.

That performance helped Australia recover from a 3-26 hole to reach 4-99 at stumps. That is just eight runs behind India A’s first innings total.

India A batted first and struggle to be all out for 107 in 47.4 overs. Seam bowler Brendan Doggett finished with an impressive 6-15.

When it was Australia A’s turn to bat, Konstas lasted just three balls.

A healthy edge to wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan was the worst possible outcome for a 19-year-old who had scored back-to-back Sheffield Shield centuries less than a month ago.

Fortunately for the New South Welshman, his new teammates also didn’t take their opportunities as Bancroft was given out caught behind for a 14-ball duck - to a delivery that hit his thigh pad on the way through - before Harris perished for 17 after being dropped on eight.

Sam Konstas of Australia A leaves the field after being dismissed for a duck on Thursday. Credit: Getty Images

Harris’ inability to make the most of his luck and the poor shot he played did not improve his chances of playing Test cricket for the first time since 2022.

The exasperated look on Bancroft’s face as he left the field summed up his woes. The country’s most reliable and consistent opener in domestic cricket over the past two seasons has now made 10 runs across five first-class innings in October.

It was a horror audition for the country’s best next-in-line batsmen in front of national selector Tony Dodemaide, and places great emphasis on the second innings of a match in which not everyone might bat again.

McSweeney, who usually bats at No.3 for South Australia, came in at No.4 on Thursday. He could now be thrown into open against India in Perth should selectors reward one of the country’s most in-form batters at domestic level.

A few hours earlier in Melbourne, Australian coach Andrew McDonald was asked about the fortunes of the potential Test openers. He stressed, with a smile, that selectors hadn’t settled on David Warner’s replacement and wouldn’t do so until after the second Australia A fixture that ends on November 10.

However, McDonald did highlight why Konstas’ lack of experience could count against him ahead of the first Test in Perth on November 22.

Nathan McSweeney bunkers down against India A.Credit: Getty Images

“If you take Sam for example, he’s had limited experience in Perth, pink ball games, and then [we are] off to the Gabba. So there’s incredible challenges for players who haven’t played in those conditions before. It’s not to say he can’t do that either, he’s a fast learner.

“Then you look at Marcus Harris. It wasn’t that long ago he played a blinding innings here against England. He got [76], and the percentage of runs in that game was hugely important. So everyone’s got an avenue.”

McSweeney who has the most to gain on day two in Mackay with three other top-order batsmen from rival states left wondering what could have been.

A handful of overs left on day one of play here and Nathan McSweeney has cracked the century (of balls faced).

Would be a fair effort to get to stumps when his teammates have failed elsewhere.

A boundary through cover continues his steady progress late in the day in Mackay. Finding it hard to stay out of the runs at the moment.

Australia A 4-92: McSweeney 28*, Connolly 8*

Nathan McSweeney is batting grimly with both eyes on stumps - he’s 19 from 92 balls. If he can make it to the end of the day and cash in tomorrow, well those runs will be worth double considering today’s graft.

Cricket.com.au’s commentary team has run through McSweeney’s recent form, per the chart below.

He’s never opened at any level, but there’s a suggestion Marnus Labuschagne would be willing to shuffle up the order to accommodate McSweeney at three or lower. The pair are great mates having come through the Queensland system together. And McSweeney may just force the selectors’ hand given none of the specialist opening contenders have done so.

Meantime, Cooper Connolly has been dropped at third slip - flashing hard off the back foot. Mukesh Kumar could have had a third scalp for the day there.

Australia A 4-80: McSweeney 19*, Connolly 5*

Beau Webster - last year’s leading Sheffield Shield run-scorer - has fallen late in the day, he’s been riding his luck up until now. Squares up and produces a thick edge from Mukesh Kumar through to the keeper.

Webster gone for 33 from 43 balls. Easily the fastest scoring we’ve seen today and probably the most comfortable a batter’s looked despite a few airy shots.

Beau Webster sweeps for Australia A.Credit: Getty Images

The ball’s 27 overs old and Cooper Connolly is off the mark with a nice cover drive for three as well - might be getting easier with bat in hand up there in Mackay. Twelve overs left in the day, McSweeney holding the fort.

Australia A 4-76: McSweeney 17*, Connolly 3*

Turning to white-ball cricket briefly, Australia host Pakistan in a brief collection of one-dayers and T20s - starting next Monday at the MCG - in one of those limited-overs series that makes you wonder, why?

Their arrival does give us a chance to recap the wild world of Pakistan cricket though, with Jason Gillespie in the thick of it after a 2-1 series win over England with headlines everywhere you looked.

For Pakistan’s coach Jason Gillespie and his high-performance coach Tim Nielsen, their post-match ritual came with a brutal discovery at the end of the first Test against England in Multan. Gillespie discovered, via a Pakistan Cricket Board statement circulated on social media, that he and captain Shan Masood had been sacked from the team selection panel and replaced by ... a former umpire.

It was a jarring moment, and a reminder of the volatility of working on cricket in a nation of 250 million people, and for a cricket board closely entwined with the government: the PCB chair Mohsin Naqvi is also Interior Minister.

Another such interlude came a couple of weeks later, after Pakistan rebounded grandly to beat Ben Stokes’ men on a couple of spinning pitches.

Five-for: Australia\'s Jason Gillespie, displays the ball after taking five Indian wickets in 2004/.Credit: Aman Sharma

White ball coach Gary Kirsten, faced with a similar change in role description, had quit, and Gillespie was asked to substitute.

For a tour of Australia where he would already be located, Gillespie agreed, but the instability is something he and Nielsen are weighing up. Gillespie is six months into a two-year deal.

Pakistan have had 26 different selectors since 2021, and there have been three different selection groups appointed since Gillespie started in July.

They played the second Test against England in Multan on a used pitch, then used industrial fans and heaters to dry out the pitch for the final game in Rawalpindi. Extreme measures. Or just another day in Pakistan cricket.

Read the full story here.

Just as things start to settle down and McSweeney and Webster look more comfortable than any of their teammates, left-arm offie Manav Suthar is into the attack. And he’s ripping one past Webster’s probing bat straight away - impressive start.

Nathan McSweeney bunkers down against India A.Credit: Getty Images

Australia A take drinks with Webster scoring 16 of a 22-run partnership so far. McSweeney is only the second player this game to face more than 50 balls today. Meanwhile, some incredible numbers courtesy of AAP - exactly how Australia’s opening contenders have not taken their chances since Cameron Green went down a few months ago.

Australia A 3-48: McSweeney 8*, Webster 16*

McSweeney’s grafting away as India’s seamers make life very difficult, Kumar Reddy - who is in India’s Test squad as an all-rounder - looks pretty handy.

He almost snuck a yorker through McSweeney’s defence a few minutes ago. Beau Webster at the other end might just throw caution to the wind - he’s already into double figures from 14 balls.

And so, where do things sit after Harris, Bancroft and Konstas have all been and gone? Well, more or less the same as they did before they all batted. Just even less confidence than ever in which way Australia goes.

Australia A 3-37: McSweeney 5*, Webster 10*

And there he goes. Marcus Harris has let that life go to waste, he’s wafted at a short ball outside off, and edged straight to second slip. No mistake this time, Devdutt Paddikal takes an easy catch and Harris is gone for 17 - the sum total of the three leading opening contenders.

Harris did not need to be playing at that one and he knows it, forlornly swinging his bat on the way out.

Over to you Aussie selectors. Prasidh Krishna, an impressive upright prospect hitting the deck hard, has his second scalp of the day. And just quietly, that’s the 13th wicket of the day in just 60 overs. Pitch doesn’t seem to be a minefield by any means, but it’s been all bowlers today.

Australia A 3-27: Harris 17, McSweeney 5*

Marcus Harris has all of Cameron Bancroft’s luck it seems, he’s been dropped at third slip - and that’s an absolute dolly.

Mukesh Kumar around the wicket to Harris after tea, angling in and a healthy edge carries through at hip height to the fielder - apologies didn’t catch (pun kind of intended) who it was. But he’s dropped a sitter.

Might that be the break that decides the vacant opening slot? Punches a boundary down the ground through mid-on a minute later - that’s very nice on the eyes.

Australia A 2-17: Harris 8*, McSweeney 5*