***Official*** Pakistan in Australia 2023/24

[GotSpin]

Don't worry though we'll solve the problem of turgid, attritional batting by picking a bloke who strikes at 40 in the Shield

The turgid, attritional batting looks like a group player decision to me

Much like the decision to bowl hip high bouncers for entire sessions

 

[Spark]

Meh, I don't think the individual batsman really deserve to be dropped (other than maybe Warner who's retiring). Khawaja and Head are in a bit of a slump but had been dominant for 2 years before that. Marnus is at least getting starts and copped a couple of peaches just when he might've got a big score. Smith's form is a little more concerning but it's still Smith. And Marsh has been the one in-form batsman all series.

Marnus has been worse than Smith over the past year. Is OT his only actual innings of match-defining significance since the WI statpad?

 

[GotSpin]

Meh, I don't think the individual batsman really deserve to be dropped (other than maybe Warner who's retiring). Khawaja and Head are in a bit of a slump but had been dominant for 2 years before that. Marnus is at least getting starts and copped a couple of peaches just when he might've got a big score. Smith's form is a little more concerning but it's still Smith. And Marsh has been the one in-form batsman all series.

The fact that there’s no pressure on them is the problem though. Marnus has become a liability now

 

[Spark]

The turgid, attritional batting looks like a group player decision to me

Much like the decision to bowl hip high bouncers for entire sessions

I honestly don't think so for Smith and Marnus, I think those two are too stubborn to be told what to do and are doing this out of their own initiative. Smith especially.

 

[morgieb]

Marnus has been worse than Smith over the past year. Is OT his only actual innings of match-defining significance since the WI statpad?

Pretty much, yeah. He had a 70-odd last year here but that's it.

 

[Spark]

Since the start of last year Marnus has 14 scores of 25+. 2 were not out and 1 was a hundred and a crazy number of those are between 30 and 60. Just an unacceptable amount of sloppiness.

 

[Starfighter]

Smith especially.

Yet he does so much better when he plays shots. I've said it ad nauseam, but it's like he's forgetting what made him so good.

 

[Spark]

Smith meanwhile: 16 scores of 25+, three hundreds. So better but not massively so. The last six months in particular have been a near unbroken streak of unconverted starts.

 

[Spark]

Yet he does so much better when he plays shots. I've said it ad nauseam, but it's like he's forgetting what made him so good.

Oh no I 100% agree but it seems clear to me that it's something he's stubbornly decided to do. It's not like he's suddenly forgotten how to score runs around the ground - with the caveat that I'm aware that he's had a recurring hand injury that has limited his ability to score square of the wicket offside at times - he's just calibrated his risk/reward radar so badly that he just refuses to take any such risks and when he does, they're often really poor ones.

 

[Starfighter]

The fact that there’s no pressure on them is the problem though. Marnus has become a liability now

And it's a testament to how bad, for multiple reasons, the domestic system as been at producing batsmen.

For near term prospects we have no openers. For the middle order there's Green, who they are trying to get to perform roles that will diminish his output, and McSweeney, who if he does continue to improve is probably two years at least off being ready. Hardie hasn't scored a ton in a while but he's probably third.

 

[Starfighter]

Oh no I 100% agree but it seems clear to me that it's something he's stubbornly decided to do. It's not like he's suddenly forgotten how to score runs around the ground - with the caveat that I'm aware that he's had a recurring hand injury that has limited his ability to score square of the wicket offside at times - he's just calibrated his risk/reward radar so badly that he just refuses to take any such risks and when he does, they're often really poor ones.

The hand injury might be playing a bigger role than is being let on as he regularly used to play pressure-releasing shots past point.

You won't brook any argument from me his head is in the wrong place. But how to fix it?

 

[Starfighter]

I think Pakistan are anticipating that Marsh will tee off it they take the new ball.

 

[Spark]

The hand injury might be playing a bigger role than is being let on as he regularly used to play pressure-releasing shots past point.

You won't brook any argument from me his head is in the wrong place. But how to fix it?

Get him to retire from white ball cricket for a start. He's won everything that actually matters in those formats, he should do a Khawaja and focus on mentally regenerating between Test series. This year is a perfect time to do it as we don't play that many Tests.

 

[Starfighter]

Get him to retire from white ball cricket for a start. He's won everything that actually matters in those formats, he should do a Khawaja and focus on mentally regenerating between Test series. This year is a perfect time to do it as we don't play that many Tests.

Stop being logical and sensible...

 

[morgieb]

Get him to retire from white ball cricket for a start. He's won everything that actually matters in those formats, he should do a Khawaja and focus on mentally regenerating between Test series. This year is a perfect time to do it as we don't play that many Tests.

Yeah I don't get why he hasn't. Will he be there in 2027? Most likely not. Will he make the T20 squad for the T20 World Cup? Up in the air. Hell I'm not even 100% convinced he's a walkup start Australia's best ODI XI. Who cares about the Champions Trophy? (although given Warner's given himself some wriggle room to come out of retirement there....)

 

[Spark]

Yeah I don't get why he hasn't. Will he be there in 2027? Most likely not. Will he make the T20 squad for the T20 World Cup? Up in the air. Hell I'm not even 100% convinced he's a walkup start Australia's best ODI XI. Who cares about the Champions Trophy? (although given Warner's given himself some wriggle room to come out of retirement there....)

If he isn't tapped on the shoulder after the T20 WC at the latest I'll be very very aggravated.

 

[Starfighter]

This is slipping away from Pakistan again, and them letting constant no-pressure runs out to deep point is a big factor.

 

[Spark]

Carey is already demonstrating that just a little bit of impetus can make all the difference. New ball probably helps too tbf.

 

[Starfighter]

I think he'll review that. Height and possibly down leg would be the potential concerns.

Looks like it's hit him quite high.

 

[TheJediBrah]

The Australian batting line up is just so bad right now. These blokes would be fighting for their places if anyone else could score runs. Meanwhile, we have a guy who does average 50 in FC running drinks

This is so reactive. Cameron Green was demonstrably worse than every one* of this top 6 over the last year. Picking him over one of them would have been dumb


*Except Warner I guess, but even then it's close