There’s tricky, and there’s too tricky by half. On the morning of the start of the second Test match in Brisbane, Australia had still not announced its final XI.
Steve Smith said, “We’ll wait and see what the wicket looks like, and from there we’ll determine a playing XI.” If you buy that, here’s a set of steak knives.
Pat Cummins bowls in the nets in Brisbane.Credit: Getty Images
Patrick Cummins, ready or not? That wasn’t dependent on how many centimetres of grass were left unshaven. Nor was it resolved by Cummins being left out of the squad, but not “ruled out” of playing. By leaving the question open, Australia knew what they were doing with Cummins: deploying him as a bogey man.
Nathan Lyon, in or out? Usman Khawaja? Here on Tuesday morning, gone (but not from the squad) by Tuesday afternoon. Travis Head to open the batting? Let England stew over that one.
Added together, these preparations looked too confused to be true. Two alternatives remained: Australia, at 1-0 up and playing on a surface and in a format where they have vastly more experience than England, were in complete disarray; or they were playing ducks and drakes to mess with English heads. You decide.
Given the brevity of the Perth Test match, it’s as if the days and weeks of fervid speculation about these Ashes were just kicked down the road by 11 days. Phony war had been followed by a phony peace.
With neither set of players taking part in any actual games, what remained were mind games, and it’s been interesting to see the totality of the contrast. England are sticking to their plan.
Mark Wood’s replacement by Will Jacks suggests a slight variation on that plan, but it only makes sense, after Perth, that they should take the opportunity provided by Wood’s injury to stiffen their batting.