The Great Australian Bat Off has returned for a brand new season with fresh faces and forgotten favourites bidding to join the cast for the Ashes series opener. In a major subplot, captain Pat Cummins is officially out of the first Test and is all but certain to be replaced by understudy Scott Boland, while the final auditions to claim a spot in the squad will be staged across the Sheffield Shield matches that begin on Tuesday as much as the T20 series against India.
With Steve Smith to captain the side at No 4, Travis Head a lock in the middle-order, and Khawaja bringing continuity as an opener even amid signs of decline, selectors have enough pieces to complete their batting puzzle. But how they fit them all together – and whether some pieces might be forced into unfamiliar positions – could be decided this week.
With Australia’s initial Ashes squad expected to be named at the end of this Sheffield Shield round, we look at the batters pushing for a spot in the XI to take on England in Perth.
Sam Konstas
Test record: 5 matches, 163 runs, 0 centuries, average 16.30
First-class record: 24 matches, 1,321 runs, 3 centuries, average 31.45
Australia have tried and tested four batters – Nathan McSweeney, Konstas, Head and Labuschagne – to open alongside Khawaja over the past year, with each of them failing to grasp the opportunity to make the spot their own. Konstas has come the closest with a famously dazzling debut against India in the Boxing Day Test before falling out of favour for the Sri Lanka tour and the winner-takes-all World Test Championship final.
The 20-year-old is still seen as one for the long-term – and is again the incumbent after being recalled for three Tests in the Caribbean – though his meagre returns against West Indies and lack of runs to start the Australian summer have pushed him back down the pecking order. In Konstas’s favour is that he is making his way as a specialist opener and has already experienced the pressure cooker of two Tests against India, though he is still to prove he has the temperament and batting tempo to handle the heat of an Ashes series.
Marnus Labuschagne
Test record: 58 matches, 4,435 runs, 11 centuries, average 46.19
First-class record: 168 matches, 12,260 runs, 34 centuries, average 45.07
The former No 1-ranked Test batter’s spectacular start to the summer with four centuries in five matches has already earned him a recall to the ODI squad and presents a strong case for his quick return to the Test team. The neatest solution for Australia would be to reward Labuschagne for his re-emergence with another shot at opening while keeping Green, Smith, Head and Webster batting at three to six.
The 30-year-old likes to dictate terms to the bowlers with positive play and would complement Khawaja’s more steady style well, while Australia have shown in the past that they are comfortable with two left-handers opening the innings. Runs against Victoria and an attack that will be missing Boland this week would put Weatherald right in the frame for a first international cap especially if there is a preference for a specialist opener.
Matt Renshaw
Test record: 14 matches, 645 runs, 1 century, average 29.31
First-class record: 127 matches, 7,809 runs, 24 centuries, average 37.72
The versatile batter has hovered around the fringes of the Test team since losing his regular place after 11 matches in 2018, and has just been handed a first opportunity with the ODI side against India. Three useful innings, including a half-century in the third white-ball international in Sydney, showed that Renshaw is increasingly comfortable at the elite level.
The 29-year-old started this season in fine touch with 248 runs in three one-day matches for Australia A and scored a century while opening for Queensland in his only Sheffield Shield innings so far. Renshaw initially broke into the Test side as a 20-year-old opener back in 2016, and is again batting at the top of the order for his state side, but has built up useful experience lower down that could appeal to the selectors.
Mitch Marsh
Test record: 46 matches, 2,083 runs, 3 centuries, average 28.53
First-class record: 121 matches, 6,402 runs, 13 centuries, average 33.34
The Australia white-ball skipper has talked down his chances of being selected for the Ashes opener and is a smokey – at best – to make a shock return. But Marsh has proven in the past that he is more comfortable than most against express pace and on a bouncy deck which could suit a horses-for-courses approach to play at his home venue in Perth.
Marsh has found runs while opening alongside Head in the recent ODIs against India, and put together big scores in earlier white-ball internationals against New Zealand and South Africa. The 34-year-old will continue to lead Australia in five T20s against India starting on Wednesday, rather than press his claims in the Sheffield Shield, but the door has not closed on his Test career with coach Andrew McDonald naming Marsh as one player who could be selected based on white-ball form.
About the Author
