“More broadly to David,whenever this Test career does finish up,you’ve got to respect the way he has been able to do that,and I think some of the beneficiaries of it are the people batting up the other end to him or coming in after him. That ability to put the opposition under pressure is pretty special and not to be taken lightly.”
In terms of Warner’s contribution over a decade as an aggressive opening batter,Bailey said the hole he would leave had to be carefully considered. The selectors are eager to avoid a repeat of the “spin cycle” that followed Warne’s retirement in 2007,when countless spinners were burnt through before the emergence of Nathan Lyon in 2011.
“Whenever you’ve had someone who’s had that longevity and been so dominating in a role[it’s important] just to temper the expectations of whoever is going to be the replacement there,” Bailey said. “I think back to Warnie finishing up as a spinner and how many spinners got brought in and shuffled out in the quest to almost try and replicate Warnie.
“I don’t think you ever try and replicate someone who has played a role for as long as someone has and done it as well as they have. I’d put David in that category,the way he’s opened the batting for Australia for such a long period of time. That’s certainly something we’re conscious of,making sure that fit for David is the right one.”
While Bailey stopped short of guaranteeing Warner’s spot for the whole of the Pakistan series,it is difficult to see him being discarded before the third match at the SCG in January.
“Ultimately we still think he’s in our best 11 players to win the first Test,” Bailey said. “Test cricket in terms of the way the World Test Championship is set up ... each Test is critical,there’s points on the line for each and every game. So our focus is very much on picking the 11 we think can do the job and there’s roles within that for each individual and how that structures the team as a whole. We think David is the right person for this Test.
“It’s been the ongoing story,hasn’t it,that clearly Dave would like to get through the series and finish up in Sydney and I fully respect that and understand that from a playing point of view. We’ve been pretty consistent around the fact that with any player performance wise it is how they perform as an individual and how that performance fits into the function of the team,and that won’t change.”
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Mitchell Marsh and Cameron Green were both named in the squad,with Marsh expected to get first crack at the all-rounder’s berth in Perth. Lyon is also back in the team after he suffered a torn calf at Lord’s and missed the final three Ashes Tests – his absence was a major reason for England’s recovery to draw the series 2-2.
Pakistan,led by the left-handed top order batter Shan Masood,have never won a Test series in Australia. Their four victories in Tests on these shores have come in Sydney in 1977,Melbourne in 1979 and 1981,and Sydney also in 1995.
Since then,however,Australia have won 14 consecutive matches against Pakistan on home soil,most recently in 2019.
Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c),David Warner,Usman Khawaja,Marnus Labuschagne,Steve Smith,Travis Head,Mitchell Marsh,Alex Carey,Mitchell Starc,Nathan Lyon,Josh Hazlewood,Scott Boland,Cameron Green,Lance Morris.
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