Shane Watson's
gradual slide down the order is set to continue with Ricky Ponting's
replacement expected to take over the No.3 position. Australia's coach Mickey Arthur
said that while the full selection panel had not yet discussed who
would take Ponting's place for the Hobart Test against Sri Lanka
starting in ten days, he and the captain Michael Clarke had a potential
replacement in mind who would be best suited to first drop.
That would mean Clarke could stay at No.5 and Michael Hussey at No.6,
but Watson would need to drift down to No.4 to accommodate the new man.
Watson is Australia's vice-captain and a key man in their plans to
regain the Ashes next year, but his role in the side is evolving and
having spent two and a half years as an opener, he moved to No.3 after
his season-ending injury last summer allowed Ed Cowan and David Warner
to become the Test openers.
"We haven't even discussed it yet [as a full selection panel], so I'm
obviously putting a personal opinion. Without wanting to name names, it
will probably be a guy who will come in and bat three and possibly a
move for Watto at four," Arthur said of Ponting's replacement. "It just
looks right and gives us a bit of stability.
"Michael and I, once we see who that guy is - and we've got in our minds
who we think the guy is, but we still need to discuss that as a
selection panel - and then sit down in Hobart next Monday when we arrive
there and we'll make a decision on what our preferred batting order is
going to be."
Phillip Hughes and Usman Khawaja are the leading candidates for a recall to the Test side, although it is not out of the question that Rob Quiney
could be given another opportunity after failing in the first two Tests
against South Africa. Whoever is included, they will need to provide
Australia with a stability that the recent No.3s have not. The only
century scored at first drop by an Australian since Ponting moved down
the order was Shaun Marsh's debut ton in Sri Lanka last year.
"Cowan and Warner showed us glimpses this series," Arthur said. "I
thought they were good in patches, but we need a lot more consistency,
especially from our top four because we know at five and six we've got
the best batsman in the world going into this Test match [Clarke] and Mr
Cricket in Huss. We know that we're really well covered at five and
six. We just need one, two, three and four to be giving us a really good
platform and that's something we'll have a look at.
"When you're looking at Cowan, you're looking at Warner, you're looking
at whoever comes in again and then Watto, there's no massive amount of
Test caps there when you take Watto aside. You've got to give those guys
time to grow and be a little bit more consistent. They've shown us
they've got the goods, we've just got to be patient with them."
Australia must swiftly move on to their next challenge, a three-Test
series against Sri Lanka, and then they face a tour of India ahead of
back-to-back Ashes campaigns. Despite the top-order struggles and
injuries to key fast bowlers, Arthur is happy with Australia's progress
as they approach what will be one of the most important years of Test
cricket in the side's recent history.
"If I look over the past year and I go back to the Test match we had in
Hobart where we lost to New Zealand, that was a time for real reflection
and a time for change and I think as a Test unit we can take a lot of
pride from what we've done over the last year and I certainly think we
were in a far better place now than we were this time last year," Arthur
said. "We've just got to keep building. We've got a big series now
against Sri Lanka and we've got to keep building through that.
"We've got a real tough series in India and that is followed by
obviously what is the ultimate and that's the Ashes. We've got to make
sure we've got a settled unit, very clear on what their roles are come
those big Tests that lie ahead of us. But I'm still really happy we're
going in the right direction."
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