Hohns blames players for loss as Wade axed
Australia’s selectors have put the blame for the Border-Gavaskar series loss at the foot of the players after revealing there was not a solitary selection they regretted.
Australia’s selectors have put the blame for the Border-Gavaskar series loss at the foot of the players after revealing there was not a solitary selection they regretted.
The fact selectors have, if anything, reduced the batting depth for March’s tour of South Africa rather than increased it, is indicative of the fact there are no other standout options in Australian cricket that could improve on the squad that suffered such a chastening series loss to India.
Usman Khawaja’s international career appears over after he failed to get a look-in among 37 players were picked for concurrent series of Tests in South Africa and T20s in New Zealand.
Matthew Wade’s impressive Test cricket renaissance is also over, after the plucky Tasmanian was the sole player dropped from the Indian series.
With back-up wicketkeeper Alex Carey and Queensland seamer Mark Steketee picked in Wade’s place instead of an out-and-out batsman, Australian selectors have taken a punt that Travis Head is good enough to win back his place in the middle-order and Will Pucovski’s shoulder is ready for the rigours of a three-Test series in South Africa.
National selector Trevor Hohns conceded his panel will have to be more mindful of rotating fast bowlers in South Africa and future series, but said the reality is the series was there to be won by the players who took the field in Sydney and Brisbane.
Hohns said he and fellow selectors Justin Langer and George Bailey had reviewed their decisions during the summer and were comfortable the right strings had been pulled – hence the reason why a largely unchanged unit will take on South Africa.
“Absolutely and we’ve already done that. We’ve reviewed it among ourselves and I’m sure each one of us individually would have reflected on the performance A, of the team and B, whether there was anything we could have done any differently,” Hohns said.
“And if I’m serious, I can’t think of anything else we probably could have done during that series, player wise. We had opportunities to win games in particular in Sydney and we didn’t take those opportunities.”
Pucovski has responded well to an injection to his shoulder in recent days and medical staff are confident he can get through South Africa without surgery.
However, selectors appear torn on whether to return him to open the batting or slot him in at No 5 and allow Marcus Harris to stay up the top with David Warner.
If Pucovski opens, then Head appears likely to slot back into the middle-order spot he relinquished midway through the Indian series, although Moises Henriques is now a serious contender to play a Test in South Africa as a specialist batsman.
Hohns refused to rule out the prospect Carey could also be considered as a specialist batsman, but it’s clear his presence in the squad is more of a pointer to him being Tim Paine’s long-term successor as keeper.
“In regards to Travis, he’ll be a frontline contender,” said Hohns.
“Alex Carey has been on our radar for some time. He’s played limited overs cricket for us and we thought that was the ideal pathway for him to get to Test match level. I think our thinking is reasonably clear (on him as Paine’s successor) without rubber stamping it.
“Alex is there definitely as back-up wicketkeeper and the current form he’s in of course with the bat doesn’t exclude him from possibly playing a role in the batting line-up if required.
“(Matthew Wade) in our view hasn’t done enough. I’m not being unfair to him. He would recognise that fact as well.”
The Daily Telegraph
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