A familiar rainy forecast for the New Year’s Test at the SCG has fired another flipper into Australia’s plans for the battle with South Africa, possibly fouling up Ashton Agar’s chances of a recall.
Lacking Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green due to finger injuries, Australia is weighing up the idea of shuffling the deck quite substantially in the last Test before a vital tour to India, where the tourists have not won since 2004.
Ashton Agar during his most recent Test appearances, in Bangladesh in 2017.Credit:AP
The elevation of wicketkeeper Alex Carey to six would allow captain Pat Cummins to have all of Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar and Lance Morris in harness, a combination to balance winning the Test with future goals.
But the prospect of showers – currently forecast to hit at least some point of all the first four days at the SCG – and mild temperatures may affect this blueprint, particularly in terms of the pitch and the prospect of twin spin. Statistician Ric Finlay has calculated that, since the start of Test matches in 1877, Sydney has hosted more washed out days than any other Australian venue: 25.
“There’s so many options depending on what the surface offers, in terms of the balance of the attack,” Australia’s head coach and selector Andrew McDonald said. “It could be two spinners, two quicks.
Agar features regularly in Australia’s white-ball sides.Credit:Getty Images
“We could play a slightly more aggressive team with Alex Carey going to six and play five bowlers. Or we could just play what we call a normal structure for Australia, where it’s three quicks and one spinner and some part-time spin options to help out. That’s really where we’re at.”
That outcome would be somewhat frustrating for Agar and the selectors, given how few opportunities he has had to bowl on turning tracks in domestic cricket since the last of his Test matches in Bangladesh in 2017. As a recent example, Western Australia played New South Wales on a sharply spinning surface at the SCG earlier this year, but Agar was on Prime Minister’s XI duty in Canberra at the time.
“You’re still wanting to pick the right team for the right conditions, you don’t want to play in spite of the conditions in terms of the team you pick,” McDonald said. “We feel like the left-arm orthodox can be successful in Sydney and also as we venture to the subcontinent.
“Would we like (Agar) to have had more first-class opportunities? There’s no doubt about that. But we feel as though his skill-set would fit perfectly in the subcontinent. He’s a very mature player now and we feel like if he was to get that opportunity in India or firstly here, that he would be able to step up into that role.”
In the event of rain and an evenly grassed pitch, the selectors may well choose Morris, the firebrand paceman who would be Australia’s first Test debutant since Mitch Swepson in Pakistan, as one of four bowlers with Matt Renshaw and Marcus Harris vying for the sixth batting spot.
The versatile Renshaw is more likely, as there is reluctance to split Usman Khawaja and David Warner at the top of the order, where Harris regularly bats for Victoria and Australia.
“We feel with Matt, in particular, that he’s got the flexibility to bat anywhere in the order from the top through the middle as well,” McDonald said. “We feel Marcus Harris, he’s an opening batter or top three. We’ve seen him bat at three at times across his career.
“Usman Khawaja, I don’t want to give too much away, but he could bat [in the] middle. But we do like the combination of him and Davey up the top and that’s probably where we’ll head in the future as well, unless things shifted significantly on us. Matt gives us that flexibility for a middle-order player, there’s no doubt about that.”
Either way, there are no qualms about elevating Carey in the order, particularly after his sparkling century against the Proteas at the MCG.
“I think he’s shown he’s more than capable,” McDonald said. “[He produced an] incredible innings at the MCG. Some of his work in Sri Lanka was very impressive in those conditions.
“It feels as though his game is well-rounded now. He’s got options for most of the surfaces, and I think that an exposure up the order would be good for the team and also good for his game.”
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