Former England captain and Test opener Mike Atherton has expressed dismay at the indecision that continues to surround the make-up of Australia’s top order.
Once a source of such stability and strength that it bordered on intimidation for opposing Test sides, Atherton suggested the critical opening position has become a weakness that England’s pacemen can look to exploit in the Ashes series.
“It is remarkable that two weeks before the first Ashes Test in Perth, the hosts still do not know who will partner Usman Khawaja at the top of the order,” Atherton wrote in The Times.
Since the retirement of David Warner in early 2024 the Australian Test side has seen a revolving door of opening partners for 38-year-old veteran Khawaja.
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Khawaja has walked out with Steve Smith (four matches), Nathan McSweeney (three matches), Travis Head (two matches), Sam Konstas (five matches) and Marnus Labuschagne (one match) who was subsequently dropped after appearing in the one-off ICC World Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord’s.
Should Tasmania’s Jake Weatherald be chosen to make his debut for the first Test in Perth, he would become Khawaja’s sixth opening partner in less than two years.
‘Muddled thinking’ from Australia
Atherton contrasted the current thinking of the Australian selection panel chaired by George Bailey—which he described as ‘muddled’ and possibly straining under the inability to make decisive calls—with England’s opening duo of Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett who have now walked out together 55 times in Test cricket, averaging 46.
While there’s little doubt everyone in Australian cricket would prefer a more settled top order, especially coming into such a hugely anticipated Test series on home soil, achieving it is easier said than done with no batsman yet able to make the position his own.
Of course whoever gets the nod for Perth on November 21, and regardless of how well they perform in the upcoming Ashes series, it won’t be long before Australia is once again on the search for a new opening batsman given Khawaja will turn 39 during the third Test in Adelaide.
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