How much change does Australia’s batting line-up need before their next Test against India? – SEN

Gerard Whateley and Robert Craddock recap the second Test between Australia and New Zealand, whilst also discussing the changes that need to be made to the Aussie’s batting line-up. They also dissect the fifth Test between India and England.

This is where we rely on the wisdom and experience of Robert crck hello toar crash good Jared yeah i’ uh fancy your remote flying across the room as well over Travis this dismissal but he was the sneaky form slump of the Season wasn’t he Travis we we never spotlighted

Him at all but I think he had one score above 40 for the season and that was the uh Century of course in Adelaide but yeah he he uh he was part of the problem he didn’t have a a great year so he’ll be looking for a lot better series

Against India next season but uh you your description of it was very good Jared because it was a subtle appraisal of of all these get out of jail ax because here’s a stat for you you’re quite right they’ve won six out of seven tests this season it’s a good stat had

They lost yesterday which looked likely they would have won nine out of their last 18 tests just 50% of 18 tests I mean that’s a fair body of evidence so that’s why yesterday was the biggest day of the summer it defined their summer 279 is always a hard Chase and it did go

Through those phases so Commendation to start with that it’s a good win a great win and what I like about it is Alex kry can sleep soundly for the next eight months knowing that he’s right for the whole Indian series had he got a duck yesterday there would have been

Speculation all the way about Josh englas replacing him and you know he’s done a a solid job Alex he has he put away the flash Harry shots yesterday and and I thought it was uh and he even admitted that after stumps and I like that part he was hard noosed he wanted

It bad and he got it it was a it was a beautiful Innings and so he he’s fine then of course Pat cumins Uh his late fight that he’s showing in pressurized situations it’s happening too regularly now Jared for us to call it a coincidence it’s three or four times

He’s done this and and his average in the fourth Innings of tests incredibly is higher than Manus labain and Steve Smiths that is incredible you just just stop and think about that for a minute C’s average in the fourth Innings of test is higher than the two anchormen of

Of this team so yeah those years where he was out with a bad back he played first and second grade Cricket at penrith and you know as a batsman and um you know that really helped him and uh so he he should and but he almost needs

A crisis to bring out the best of him it’s the personification of his leadership I think the responsibility that he feels so swamp put it out there yesterday Innings one average 12 Innings 2 average 19.8 Innings 3 average 13.8 Innings 4 average 33.577002 but he used to have this

Incredible fall off from first second third to Fourth Innings you know cuz the game gets harder the pressure Rises you know you you you often have sleepless nights throughout the test which grinds you down as Smith often had so uh yeah it’s the whole this Victory should not be

Underestimated I mean New Zealand were unbeaten in home series for seven years and 13 series and those series including winds over England and India they are very very tough to beat at home but what is it Jared we talk about it all the time but it is the truth it’s big

Brother in the backyard saying to little brother hey try all your fancy tricks champ but you’re not beating me and you know you can’t beat me it’s it’s I shouldn’t laugh but the poor O kiwis they just can’t beat Australia fancy having a 30-year gap between not winning

Series against Australia at home but a solitary test against austral at home it’s a butter clenching Le stunning statistic chaired that’s all I’ll say yes yes it is and uh it it grows and grows on them doesn’t it when they have their moments where they have Australia

On the ropes they aren’t able to inflict the damage that they might so they should have I will give credit to cumin on this front as well the only reason the target was chasable was because of cins but New Zealand didn’t get the third Innings runs that they should have

Got from the position that they built and then rendra dropped Marsh at the start of the day yesterday which was such a big moment and their Fielding is a little bit suspect that that was sort of the sleeper throughout the the T20 series and the tests is they’re a poor

Fielding side separate of Phillips who’s maybe the best fielder in the world um and it did it came back to haunt them yeah it did and look I heard a couple of the boys on the senn commentary yesterday and one of my little net Watcher friends was really surprised

Their slips Cordon before a gloomy start to the day yesterday didn’t practice in their relative position somewhere near the Wicket they didn’t have a like just to get used to the where the ball’s coming out of the Gloom and Revenger he just it was a horrible Miss and that

Will haunt him you know sometimes a drop catch can h a player for his whole career and and he was on top of the world after a really good 82 he’s a terrific player isn’t he um you know and just thought it was significant that Nathan lion said he’s a future St

Superstar of the game and lion chooses his words very carefully when he’s raing opposition players he he just but he knows all the triggers and um the great Cricket writer Ray Robinson always said that batsman are good judges of other batsmen but Bowlers are better because

They have to pick them apart they watch them closely and they’ve got so much to lose and I always watch listen very closely to Lions remarks about other players because he and when he gives him praise like that but it was a horrible misfire ofing you’re quite right there

Is a there is a source of lament that car wasn’t able to get his 100 with the winning runs which would have been the perfect ending you have to take what’s on offer when the result is on the line and cins with that reflection in the aftermath as he didn’t realize Carrie

Was on 98 hey Jared isn’t it funny some guys are chronic scoreboard Watchers and others just switch off and just bat and I just think that said a lot about the zone that cumins was in as in I’m just not looking up I’m I’m just playing

What’s in front of me and he did and he was you there was a moment on the footage where he looks up and realizes oh my gosh you know he was 98 so it’s sort of yeah it was a confusing moment but but your other point is correct you

Just have to take the runs imagine if you didn’t take the runs and you lost three for none like that officially then then you’ve ruined your entire summer you have so that was at stake and uh but yeah it deserved a century it was the Innings of his life really Alex kry and

Um you know he I remember it’s times like that you look back right at the start and when he switched over from the gws Giants he went and played for South Australia and do you know who’s the first voice to say this guy will play for Australia Jason Gillespie he threw

His name up right out of the blue way ahead of anyone else and said there’s something about Carrie that makes me think he’s going to play test cre and I remember thinking see gez dis that’s a big statement but but he was right it

Was a win for the good guys for Alex car that’s for sure so the Kudos and the plaits are handed out there and then the hard-headed rationalism so my snap judgments crash as we start uh the working week whether it’s a Monday or a Tuesday with the stuff that you feel

Passionately and it might recede over time but what I feel passionately is that top six in that order is not my batting lineup for the first test against India it’s no longer a small sample size there’s enough to judge in that configuration it lacks chemistry and it lacks runs and I don’t think

Australia would get away with it against India what do you think yeah I I’m worried about it and look I have to put my hand up here Jared I was a big supporter of Smith having a cracked opener uh because I just felt it it was

Just the last challenge he needed in his career but it’s taken one issue out of play one that he wanted to avoid and that’s the short pitch bowling yeah that’s that’s gone cuz with a new ball they pitch it up but it’s brought into play this other element of just pinpoint

Seam on off stump uh and he’s momentarily lost his radar of where his off stump is because he’s shuffling across the crease now in the first Innings when he shouldered arms and was lbw there’s no way two or three years ago Steve Smith would have got out like

That that ball probably actually would have been played through midwicket across his pads so and I sense the harder he tries cuz he’s thinking right I’m an opening batsman I’ve got to know where my off stump is I’ve got to let the ball go and all this and I think the

Harder he’s getting into that mentality the more it’s sort of freezing him up so he is one of the game’s great problem solvers there is that uh and he’s got about eight months to stewing it which I don’t think is necessarily is a good thing because he’s not on the IPL

Circuit so he’ll go home and he’ll play golf which is his new passion but yeah I I don’t like it but I ask you this Jared if not opener for Steve Smith then where because I can’t have him back at number four because sorry Green’s the

Only guy under 30 or he will be next summer you just and he’s blossoming at four I cannot move cam green at four so you know where I I Cannot drop Steve Smith from the team either because just because he’s Steve Smith and and and you want to be absolutely categorically

Certain that we know he’s fading but he still averaged 40 last year in tests he’s averaging 30 this year in test that’s not that’s not good but uh he’s still Steve Smith so where do you put him Jared so I I would undo everything that they’ve done this was never the

Selector idea it was never their way that they were putting Smith up this was Smith volunteering he didn’t think green should be opening so he was prepared to do it he wanted to take on The Challenge on the selector gone that was never our idea we seen it it doesn’t work and the

Risk is that would hasten the end for Smith I would go back to the original concept is we need the Dave Warner replacement at the top of the order for the chemistry for the dynamic and that player is in the top six it’s Travis head who’s now totally out of form at

Five I would revert to probably what looked the most sensible but they didn’t want to do it and if you want to hold to your top six of the best six batters in the country and they are Resolute on that front I would have head open with

Kaga labash Shan at three Smith at four green at five and Marsh at six I think the chemistry of that makes much more sense than what they’re doing at the moment well the argument for that is that and and this will sound perverse logic but head’s actually out of out of

Form at at five so it’s not as if you say oh don’t tamper with that he averaged 70 at number five this season he’s been plotting uh the argument against it is he doesn’t want to do it he doesn’t want to open um I I’m not overly convinced by that argument

Actually because if if you’re in a football team Jared if I’m in a rugby league state of origin team and the coach said to me uh would’ like you to play center I have absolutely no right to say ah no I prefer Wing thanks you know so you do Mark Taylor Made this

Point and it’s a very very good point that players have got to defer to team interest first and he’s a good team man Travis too he he really is he’s uh they all like him he wants what the team is but when quizzed he he said he didn’t

Wasn’t particularly keen on opening you one one point I do agree with you since David Warner left the team kaasa has been a slightly lesser player the strike hasn’t been rotated as much the field sort of coming around him he’s become more stagnant he hasn’t been terrible by

Any means he’s been getting these little Innings of 38 batting for most the first session and all that that’s what it open to do that’s a pass Mark but it’s just that he loved Warner and he loved Warner’s vitality and and it’s such a good point you make Jared and this is

Why I’m not pushing for Rena bankof or Harris Harris is probably more uptempo than the others but you you you you you can’t put another quiet opener in with kagia it it just can’t happen you your head plan is definitely worthy of consideration and I think they will

Consider it but it’s all to do with Travis’s mindset I reckon yeah and this is where the lead time to November I think plays for everybody so the risk for me is that you accidentally hasten the end for both kaaja and Smith with this setup in the first two tests of a

Summer against India where their Quicks have been rampant all around the world uh and heads form slump he will come out of that and hopefully comes out of it during his white ball winter which will includ a World Cup where he’ll be a pivotal figure I would just use this

Time well instead of crossing my fingers and hoping that something that isn’t working will work when we get to the home summer and I the total get out is it was never their idea this was never the selector plan to do this um so it’s easily undone I think it’s much easier

To undo than it is to stubbornly stick with and something that’s not working cross your fingers and hope it will against the might of India yeah and one one thing you said there that’s very interesting about this was never the selector idea to this point the selectors have deferred to the

Wishes of players in the team but I’m here to te tell you Jared I’ve got a bit of news for you that from here on in everything gets a bit harder and over the next two years they will have to tap players and then their careers it’s coming that moment and it’s tough

Moments you know I remember when Trevor hones sat down with Ian Healey and said Ian I know you want to play a final test at the gabber no it’s time for Adam Gilchrist he called Mark Taylor in once and said Mark you’re finished as a one-day cricketer he called Steven waren

And said Steve this has got to be your last season so the these are tough conversations and George Bailey to this point hasn’t really had to do it you know he’s very close to the team it’s worked well he he trains with them he puts the tracksuit on and that’s all

Good but Jared these moments are coming these really tough end career moments are coming over the next couple of years and I’m not saying it’s Steve Smith specifically although he’s you know he’s close to him but you’re talking great players of a very solid era so that that

Will they’ll know they’re alive the next couple of years the selectors don’t worry about that crash you forecast a little while ago as these five test Series in India will progressively wear down the tourists and once the trophy was lost uh they got walloped in that

Fifth test just a closing word on what transpired there yeah just a test too long they weren’t bad at all England that they gave a lot of cheek it should have been closer than the scool line Looks line there’s been four 4-1 victories Australia’s had over England when we have categorically

Pulped them that was not the case in this series sure a couple of test will oppss sited I just think that the next ashes Series in Australia not this season the season after will be fascinating because you think of the age of all the Australian players now uh

Pretty soon it’ll just be Cameron green the only one under 30 so there’s massive changes ahead and it all could happen in that season if I was England I’d be thinking let’s hope almost that these players hang on till then and then let’s try and hit him with a massive assault

Like it’s going to it could be uh a really close Asher series that one deceptively close