Not yet 25. Nine matches. 17 innings. 75 maidens from 294 overs. 40 wickets at 21.75. Striking at 44 while conceding less than three.
And yet some would drop him for a guy who is virtually 31. Whose economy rate is the same but strikes at 61 and therefore averages almost 30. Whose last three series averages were 54, 108 and 54 before lucking into a dead rubber test.
Surely not. It’s not Hazlewood’s fault that Johnson is 34 and probably spent and averaged 35 against India and England?
Me, I’d happily go in with Starc, Hazlewood, M. Marsh, Lyon and Ahmed. You. what’s your attack?
About Peter Warrington
Richmond fan; Kim Hughes tragic; geographer; kids' book author; Evertonian; Manikato; Harold Park trots 1980; father of two; cat lover, dancer with dogs; wannabe PJ HArvey backing vocalist; delusional...
Johnson beats Ahmed in my view and probably will bat better, which we may need. Now Peter, you get very many Brownie points for being a geographer – a noble and ancient profession. But really, cat lover and Kim Hughes tragic? Get a grip man!
When do we see Pat Cummins again ? 2016-17, five years since his test debut ? is coulter-nile a test option ?
Glen!
would never pick Coulter Nile as he is 28 already, In Starc Hazlewood Pattinson Cummins Marsh Faulkner we trust.
have really only seen Cummins in the hit and giggle recently and he seems a bit up and down, fast enough to go far when tonked. needs guile or an extra mile for mine. Pattinson is the one I expect to go boom, very DK 74-5 for mine.
Fair enough Peter. I didn’t know the age of the hyphen. He’s never done much to impress me but there are people who have wraps on him..
Cummins played that one test, a fairytale debut but nought since then. I still hope we get a chance to see a test XI with its attack including Cummins, Pattison, Starc, Lyon and M Marsh. To paraphrase Joe Strummer, ” The future is unwritten”.
Glen!
I think the issue is more than just Hazlewood/Siddle; it’s more about the overall structure of the complete attack, and the ability to play tempo cricket if ever the captain so demanded.
One consideration is the difference between MMarsh and the aged version of Watson as “4th seamers”, Marsh is Watto when he burst onto the scene, bowling fast for wickets – maybe with a view to being a 3rd seamer who bats good. Watto (bowling!) recently offered stability and low scoring rates, by bowling stump tp stump. He and Siddle were really doing the same thing. So Watson to Marsh means more wickets but more runs conceded.
And then there is Lyon. Whilst his economy rate is OK for an offie at 3.16, in amongst the last few series he has gone at the un-offie economy rates of 3.6 v India, 3.8 in Dubai, 4.4 in India.
In innings, he went for 4.7 twice in England, one a first innings, Another 4 there as well, He also went 3.45 and 3.7 at Cardiff and even 3.3 at Lords when we were thrashing them.He also went 4+ an over in the first dig 4 times last extended summer.
Now the good news is he struck at 58 against India and 50 in England. His career strike rate is 64.7 and falling. So he’s now an attacking offie. But in an attacking attack.Haven’t seen much discussion re this.
Personally I think Marsh’s is the role that will be most scrutinised if he doesn’t score and the attack leaks runs. Henriques, maybe?
Here’s the benchmark:
Hauritz 3.14, 66.6
Swann 2.98, and 60
May 2.37, 88
Yardley 2.68, 70
Mallett 2.35, 75
Veivers 1.96, 127
and just to remind why Warne was Warne: 2.65, 57
SCG Macgill: 3.22, 54