There’s not much in cricket that will question the make-up of a team more than being beaten by an innings, and that’s exactly where Australia finds themselves after a horror show in Gqeberha this week.
As many gloomily predicted, their 214-run win in the series opener was unfortunately just paper over the cracks at the selection table, which now leaves Pat Cummins’ side with a handful of major decisions to make for the decider in Cape Town.
Foxsports.com.au below analyses the selection questions Australia will ponder heavily ahead of next Tuesday’s third Test.
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TALKING POINTS: Why Marnus situation irks Aussie greats so much; ‘honest’ reveal in selection ‘madness’
PLAYER RATINGS: Only THREE Aussies pass in Test horror show as brutal failures laid bare
Head’s ton can’t prevent Aussie defeat | 04:15
NIC MADDINSON
56 runs @ 14, high score of 48
There aren’t many, if any, Test selection calls in recent memory that have shocked the Australian cricketing public more than Maddinson’s for South Africa. After a decade out of the international red-ball set-up, the 34-year-old was catapulted into the starting XI off the back of a knock of 128 for New South Wales in the domestic one-day competition — despite not playing a professional red-ball match since March 2024. Suddenly facing South Africa in South Africa would prove to be a daunting following up task. After a painstaking 33-ball duck to begin his tour, the selectors would’ve found some justification by his quick-fire 48 in the second dig at Kingsmead. His fearless stroke play was commendable and exactly what Australia needed at the time, before he was castled by Anrich Nortje’s raw pace. Unfortunately, in Gqeberha, Maddinson looked understandably lost at sea against Kagiso Rabada, nicking off to the Proteas spearhead in both innings for 0 and 8 respectively. The axe looks almost certain to swing on the left-hander, with his remarkable Test recall seemingly destined to end almost as quickly as it began. With no other specialist opener waiting in the wings in South Africa, a promotion for Matt Renshaw appears the most likely solution ahead of Cape Town.
Kerry O’Keeffe says: “I just feel for him, because he’s in a really tough role against quality bowlers. He’s been thrown in the cauldron at the toughest spot there is. He’s an admirable person, Nic Maddinson. We know that and he’s much respected within the side, but Rabada will be in Cape Town, and Maddinson shouldn’t be in Cape Town if Rabada is there.”
Usman Khawaja says: “The last little bit, it’s been hard to figure out the process and how they’re thinking. I mean, I’ve actually struggled just trying to figure it out. I’m always interested because I know for a fact with Andrew McDonald and George Bailey, there’s always a method to the madness, even though they don’t tell you what it is.
“Honestly, I think it (his selection) all hinges on the fitness of the other two, and it seems like they’re fit. He came in as cover obviously … but he’s obviously struggling. Opening is so tough, I feel for him — two matches can go by like that. It’s obviously going to be a big talking point at selection when they are talking about what they best make up (is).
“I expected him to bat five (in Durban) … and when he didn’t, I couldn’t believe it.”
Test batting options in Sheffield Shield | 01:24
MARNUS LABUSCHAGNE
127 runs @ 31.75, high score of 39 | 1 wicket @ 14
Queensland’s first drop was already in the selection gun before flying over to his country of birth, but there’s an argument his returns across the first two Tests have been overshadowed by Maddinson’s selection, among other things. One statistic that cannot be ignored, though, is his 47 innings (and counting) without a Test hundred. Not since July 2023 against England has he reached triple figures for Australia, and only once since has he scored more than 72 — a 90 in Christchurch back in March 2024. His 37 in the first innings of the opening Test was as composed as he’s looked for some time, before he was cruelly adjudged leg before wicket on the last ball before lunch on day one. Scores of 37, 14 and 39 have followed since, making it eight straight Tests without a half-century. In addition to the credits he built during his meteoric rise to international cricket all those years ago, Labuschagne has arguably benefited from a lack of standout contenders for the first-drop role at domestic level. New South Wales’ Kurtis Patterson looked his greatest threat ahead of the South Africa tour, before a minor groin injury last month ruled him out. Given the changes that could come around him in Australia’s top seven, it looks unlikely the 32-year-old will be dropped for Cape Town, particularly as the side’s specialist No.3. Should he fail there, though, the thin ice Labuschagne has been skating on will surely have given way, which could see the likes of Cooper Connolly or the uncapped Campbell Kellaway in the frame as his replacement this summer.
Pat Cummins says: “The hardest thing about opening or batting three is actually getting yourself in. The ball’s normally doing a bit. He’s actually doing the hard part. He’s getting to 30, but I think he’s gotta find ways to turn those into bigger scores. It’s certainly not a technique error. Maybe a couple of decision-making (errors) … He’s hitting the ball well.”
Usman Khawaja says: “The reason everyone’s so frustrated, particularly the older generation — you see it like you saw (Simon) Katich was gone — I see a lot of other people frustrated because he’s been three years without scoring a hundred, 47 innings. At some point, everyone looks back on their career, even myself being dropped eight times, like you never got leeway for that long.
“Obviously, we think that they think he’s still in the top six, but even to that, it’s just one of those things where it’s a bit hard to understand at times … I guess the thing for me is also, when we talk about this, they talked about, ‘If we drop Marnus, who do we have to pick back in this team?’”
Kerry O’Keeffe says: “I’d still give him one last chance, even push him off to open instead of Maddinson at Cape Town. The thing is, he had a Test average of 63 at his pomp, and now it’s down to 43.”
Mcdonald gives blunt Marnus assessment | 09:20
BEAU WEBSTER
64 runs @ 21.33, high score of 39* | 1 wicket @ 70
The Tasmanian all-rounder well and truly earned his way into Australia’s red-ball side in January last year, but after a dozen Tests, the heat is now on the 32-year-old. An important cameo at the end of Australia’s second innings in Durban shouldn’t be forgotten, but his dismissals in the second Test will raise selection questions as his counterpart Cameron Green edges closer to a return from injury. Crucially, though, Webster and Green have featured together in seven of the former’s 12 Tests, meaning the return of the latter doesn’t necessarily spell the end for ‘Slug’ in Cape Town. While Webster’s bowling has certainly been serviceable in the senior line-up this series, runs have been the far more pressing issue for selectors. Four single-digit returns in his last seven innings don’t work in his favour on that front, and given the plethora of middle-order batters waiting in the wings, the 200cm cult hero could find himself a casualty in Cape Town with an average of 20.7 across his last 10 innings. Reserve wicketkeeper Josh Inglis has played as a specialist batter before, while Cooper Connolly offers an injection of youth that selectors could be keen to deploy. Webster’s output hasn’t raised as many alarm bells as that of Marnus Labuschagne or Nic Maddinson, but the competition for his place in Australia’s top seven is considerably fiercer. With several possible changes to the batting order ahead of the series finale, his selection could ultimately hinge as much on the balance of the XI as his own performances.
Brendan Julian says: “I think he’s in trouble, but where do you see him in the order?”
Kerry O’Keeffe says: “Early on in his (Test) career, he was providing context runs, wickets and catches. But, he’s batting seven, and he has to be in the top six to be effective, because he’s not a strong enough bowler.
“He has a very vulnerable defensive press, and it’s been exposed at Test level … I think he’s an admirable teammate, and I feel desperately sorry for him — he’s in a rut. But, he’s not strong enough with bat or ball.
“Who has the highest all-round ceiling? Cooper Connolly or Beau Webster? For mine, it’s Cooper Connolly.”
Usman Khawaja says: “I think you hold onto him for one more game. I think they like Carey at six … I found it bizarre that Carey doesn’t slide up ahead of him (in the second innings).”
THE QUINTET… AND WHO MISSES OUT IN THE SERIES FINALE
For all the genuine selection quandaries Australia face heading into Cape Town, there’s one dilemma selectors should be grateful to have. The problem is, whichever way they turn, someone is going to feel aggrieved. For all the right reasons, Scott Boland has been a selector’s migraine ever since his magical Boxing Day debut against England in 2021. Nearly five years on, his Test bowling average sits at a remarkable 18.44 from 20 matches. To put that into perspective, since the end of the 19th century, only South Africa’s Vernon Philander has recorded a better average (18.01) at the same stage of a Test career. Having missed Australia’s previous three Tests, the 37-year-old was finally brought back into the fold in Gqeberha, with instant reward. A third five-wicket haul at Test level ensued after he left the Proteas’ top order in disarray, before one of the great nightwatchman performances in recent memory saw him occupy the crease for more than three hours while others struggled to survive. As is so often the case with Boland, it was the ultimate team-first performance from a player becoming increasingly impossible to leave out of the starting XI.
Boland: “I want to play every test” | 08:56
In Gqeberha, though, it was Nathan Lyon who was again the unlucky omission to accommodate Boland. While Australia’s greatest-ever off-spinner has made way for the Victorian quick before, this time was different. It marked the first time in 13 years Lyon had been overlooked for a Test when fully fit, with his two most recent omissions coming in day-night matches. His frustration at being overlooked has been understandable, and while Boland’s output again vindicated his selection, it’s far less clear whether Lyon was the right man to make way. After an excellent start with the ball across the opening two days, Australia’s fast-bowling cartel struggled to make inroads against Temba Bavuma and the South African lower order. It was precisely the scenario in which Lyon could have tied down an end and provided a point of difference with the ball. Instead, selectors were left watching Matt Renshaw’s part-time spin being called upon as Australia’s quicks were pushed to exhaustion, having already been a man down on a rain-interrupted day two as Josh Hazlewood battled food poisoning.
Of the fast-bowling contingent, Hazlewood is arguably the most logical like-for-like omission to accommodate Boland, but the veteran seamer has proven equally difficult to leave out of Australia’s starting XI when fit. His metronomic consistency is reflected in his remarkable average of 23.85 across 80 Tests, and was on full display again during his second-innings haul of 6/49 in Durban. Staying fit for the longer format has been Hazlewood’s biggest hurdle, leaving open the possibility that selectors opt to ‘rest’ him for the series finale. Such a move, however, would almost certainly be made with one eye on keeping Boland in the side while he’s in red-hot form.
Captain Pat Cummins and left-arm quick Mitchell Starc appear far less likely to make way in Cape Town, seemingly narrowing the selection squeeze to Boland, Hazlewood and Lyon — with one of the trio destined to be desperately unlucky.
Kerry O’Keeffe said: “If you start to select teams on a weather forecast, it’s a dangerous prospect (leaving out a frontline spinner). It’s like Ringo Starr has a bad night on the drums, did the Beatles drop him?”
Mark Waugh said: “Would South Africa rather face Nathan Lyon or Scott Boland? They’d say Lyon. He (Boland) averages 18 in Test cricket. If the conditions suit, he should be playing. It’s tough on Lyon, but it’s a fair call.”
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