iIt’s been a feel-good story for Australian cricket over the past 18 months, but after being named an Allan Border Medalist and giving the acceptance speech of a lifetime, Mitchell Marsh’s Test career is at a crossroads. .
“Not necessarily blind,” Pat Cummins said of Marsh’s reaction when he was told he had been dropped for the final Test against India at the SCG and replaced by Bev Webster. has been done With 73 runs in the series and limited impact with the ball, the numbers were not in their favour.
After being informed of the decision before Cummins spoke to reporters, Marsh left the nets without batting but still signed autographs and posed for pictures with fans who had turned up to watch Australia’s opening training session. were A very popular figure on the team, Cummins made a point of recounting Marsh’s first thoughts on Webster’s involvement. “The first thing he said was, ‘I can’t wait to see Beau out there and give him a crack,'” Cummins said.
The Sydney Test against India has not been kind to Marsh. In the 2018–19 series he was also dropped for the tied fixture after making a one-match comeback at the MCG where he became the oft-remembered story of his career. From there he played one Test in four-and-a-half years before returning in the middle of the 2023 Ashes.
In the last few weeks, Marsh has looked a shadow of the player who produced a string of match-changing innings against England since his recall. That day at Headingley he was dropped for 12 at slip before scoring a sensational century. Marsh said he played the game as if it was his last, having undergone ankle surgery earlier in the year to give himself a chance to play Test cricket again. But such was his impact that he lasted 14 consecutive games, even forcing Cameron Green out early last summer.
However, only once in the series did he threaten to dominate with the bat, scoring 47 runs in the second innings in Perth to make Australia’s defeat inevitable. Sometimes they seem to be stuck between attack and defense.
Marsh’s bowling workload has been modest – he bowled just 16 overs after the Perth Test – but when Cummins referred to Webster’s ability with the ball, for a match where the workload of the captain and Mitchell Starc Of particular note will be the lack of runs that cost Marsh his replacement.
“He was in the team this summer for being a top-six batsman so that’s usually the guiding principle when you pick the top order,” Cummins said. “I think when he’s at his best he comes into the team on his batting alone and his bowling is a bonus.”
The 33-year-old is not necessarily the end of Marsh’s Test career, which Cummins stressed when he confirmed the squad, but like Green, missing out on his unexpected return to England, he is now Will wait for the cards to fall. His favor.
It’s hard to see a road back to Marsh. Australia are likely to be creative with the balance of their team in Sri Lanka at the end of January, and playing spin is not one of Marsh’s strengths despite his natural strength down the ground. It would be hard to see him being called back for the final of the World Test Championship, having been left out if Australia qualified. Being a key part of Australia’s one-day squad means he will also miss Sheffield Shield cricket in February and early March.
It is the second major selection call by Australia in the last two Tests after Nathan McSweeney’s withdrawal in favor of Sam Konstas resulted in dramatic fashion at the MCG.
Unlike the 19-year-old Konstas, Webster is a player who has struggled through domestic cricket to make his debut at the age of 31. In 2023–24 he scored 938 runs and took 30 wickets in the Sheffield Shield, the only return. Gary Sobers did better. He is one of the best slip catchers in Australia.
He has also reinvented himself, reviving his medium pace during the 2020 Covid lockdown to the point where he has overtaken off-spin as his primary weapon with the ball.
“I don’t think I’d be standing here if I was still getting out off-spinners,” Webster said in Melbourne last week. “It’s a part of my game that I’m really proud of developing over the last four years.
It’s been a lot of work at the opening gate to be sore at the start and to try to get my body used to doing a few overs here and there and then a lot of balls.
“Now it feels like it’s as important as my batting game and they go hand in hand. If you’re struggling with the bat you can still contribute with the ball and vice versa.”
Webster will have fond memories of his recent outing at the SCG where he helped Tasmania to a 110-run, five-wicket victory over New South Wales.
“He’s a special player at the moment,” Tasmanian captain Jordan Silk said after that match in late November. “Whenever I think we’re in trouble, I think I can throw him the ball and he seems to be able to make something.” – Kirk Info