Put yourself in Justin Langer’s size 4 Crocs.
You’ve inherited a level of ugly never seen before in Australian cricket. You watched on as the countries team, the one you love so dearly, continually got it so wrong, on so many levels, that the outcome of the ultimate explosion was inevitable.
India gave you a hiding and exposed your batting as club standard. The media and general public laughed as you continually made a mess of press conferences and the team's performances reflected your own in front of the camera.
It’s been ugly. As ugly as we can remember. All of it: The culture reviews, the performances, the selection gaffes made worse by the inept communications and the total dominance of the BBL and how it’s impacted the national team's Test performances.
BUT – there is good news on the way – FINALLY – and it comes in the shape of the two best batsmen the country has produced since RT Ponting put his sword away for good.
The first, Steve Smith, is arguably better than Ponting. If you love numbers, then it is undeniable. He averages 76.something as captain of the country. That’s a four-year period. Dominance over a series or two is one thing, but four years!!??
Comparing era’s is always a murky one and we can always speculate about a magic formula that takes into account the uncovered/poorly prepared wickets of the 99.94 Bradman era, speed of the bowlers and lack of protective equipment to the ways of the modern day.
But this kid is as close to Bradman as we’ve ever seen.
You reckon Langer and the team haven’t missed those 70 runs per inning!!??
The second is David Warner. Comfortably the countries second best batsman. Comfortably the biggest challenge to enacting any of the recommendations from the culture review. But, when he’s at his best, he becomes the teams most feared by opposition bowlers.
Having these two players selected in the team as soon as they are fit and available would seem to be the biggest no-brainer since Eve put it on, Adam.
Furthering the push for automatic reintroduction is that the next block of cricket is as big it gets.
The World Cup. Then the Ashes.
Those size 5’s are now floating on sunshine. The world is grand again!!
But whoah, hold up now – it’s well publicised that your selection mantra is “picking blokes you perceive worthy of marrying your daughters”.
Guys of high character. Elite honesty. A package of exemplary past behaviours.
Which version of the Justin Langer selection policy will Warner and Smith sit on?
Will they get the Mathew Wade treatment? Remember him? A year of complete dominance with the blade, in all forms, all conditions, and all positions. Yet there he is; on the outer for what we can only assume as being not worthy of having his wedding funded by the coach.
Let me ask you this? Does Wade’s abrasive nature and lippy gamesmanship carry more disturbance to the team and the overarching cultural problems of CA than Warner, who is a known cultural nightmare coming off a 12-month suspension for acting as such, and Smith, the man who wore the full brunt of mismanaging his deputy the cultural nightmare?
Remember, these are men who have received actual suspensions for globally embarrassing their nation. For being condemned by the Australian public as shameful cheats and all-world-villains for their role in the extreme naughtiness of ball tampering. For being as far removed, to the side of despicable, from the misdemeanours of Wade for having a perceived flawed personality of abrasiveness through a voice-box of honesty.
How Smith and Warner are reintegrated into the Australian team will be Australian crickets biggest test since the full-blown cultural review of the broader organisation demanded a shift from the game in this country eating itself. To be honest, it was a review which barely scratched the surface when breaking down the gross negligence of a game lost in the type of inequality Mathew Wade is now experiencing.
Behaviours, judgement, punishment, perception and how it all results in acceptance. Acceptance will cover a whole host of sins.
At any level of the game, you want to hope you aren’t perceived to truly stink as a bloke — through your elite honesty — because your only hope at the selection table then hinges on you being the No.1 or 2 dog in your country, state or team.
Warner and Smith? Justin will fly them both to Vegas for a renewal of vows ceremony to be conducted at the first available Elvis service.
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