Team Selection For The Ashes 2009

Selecting the team should be very simple if you compile a list of the players the Australian team would rather not face then you will not go far wrong. Sadly the selectors will not choose the strongest possible team or even squad. Australia has come back strongly against South Africa while England continues to slip down the test rankings. Instead of embracing our better players, we seem to be more interested in trying to make them jump through hoops.

The number three batting spot needs sorting out quickly. Owais Shah waited patiently for a chance but did not make the most of what was tailor made batting wickets in the West Indies. The issue he has with recurring cramp does not help his case either. You get the feeling the selectors will not need much encouragement to quickly go back to Ian Bell when there are more experienced and better equipped candidates in both Michael Vaughan and Robert Key. Kent skipper Key is England’s forgotten man but he has a double hundred in test cricket.

Wicketkeeping is a constant issue with the limitations of Matt Prior being exposed yet again. People talk about his batting but what you get with runs you lose with missed chances, dropped catches and a generous helping of byes. England had this problem many years ago with a reluctance to pick Jack Russell. It is easier to pick the best keeper and work on his batting rather than pick a batsman and teach him how to use the gloves. James Foster should be in the test side at the very least and let Prior do the job in one day cricket if needs be.

The bowling attack is a shadow of the 2005 side and lacks a genuine fast bowler and the aggression of Simon Jones. Harmison has been hit and miss for a long time now so England needs to decide whether to get him firing or move on to someone else. There are not many alternatives but an obvious choice would be Sajid Mahmood who was frozen out after the appointment of Peter Moores. Anderson and Broad seem to be sure of their places and there is competition at last in the spin department. As usual a lot will rest on Andrew Flintoff and whether he can remain fit.

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