White is the man to lead Australia in Twenty20
The Sunday Age
Sunday October 11, 2009
RICKY Ponting recently announced his retirement from international Twenty20 cricket with the intention of prolonging his Test and one-day careers. Most people believe that his successor as captain will be Michael Clarke.At closer inspection it is revealed that Clarke's position in the team should be under intense scrutiny before being considered as the captain. His rise as a world-class Test batsman has been spectacular and the recent Ashes series has only enhanced his reputation. His numbers in one-day cricket are also sound, although at times he has stumbled in the shorter format when required to up the tempo before he is truly set.His game is based on spending time at the crease constructing an innings. Once set he can be brutal, but he needs time to reach that position. The problem with T20 is you do not have time to absorb balls and craft an innings. Clarke has not worked out his role; he has a poor record in his 19 games for Australia. His batting average of less than 20 and strike rate just on a run a ball is unacceptable.The most recent T20 game Australia played in England, at Old Trafford, was eventually washed out, but not before the Australians stumbled to 4-145 in their 20 overs. It was a game in which Clarke's innings could be best described as painful. He looked like a blind man trying to cross the road at a busy intersection without his cane €” 27 not out off 34 balls left the team well short of a suitable target and placed pressure on players lower in the order.It was seriously a case where you wanted him to stand on his stumps to escape the quicksand he was batting in.He could not get off strike, he could not find the boundary and was clearly frustrated. It was hard to believe we were watching the same man who had dominated the Ashes series. Like most experienced players he displayed the crucial element of bluff throughout his innings. As he sank deeper in the mire, he continued to smile, laugh and joke with his partners between overs at his own misfortune.How could this wicket be so tough to score on? This was the message he was trying to convey, but internally he was an irritated man who knew his teammates had the magnifying glass well and truly on their leader.Clarke so desperately wants to be the next captain of Australia and craves to lead the way in all forms of the game by his deeds. His form in T20 is holding him back. He knows it, we know it, but do the selectors know it?Cameron White, in that same game, played an innings of extreme contrast to Clarke's, scoring 55 off 36 balls. He made Clarke look second rate. White hit the gaps and took singles, crashed balls into the fence and smashed some well and truly over it.This game highlighted more than ever that specialist players need to be selected in T20 and how Clarke keeps his position ahead of Brad Hodge is staggering. Clarke is a fine player and with persistence he may finally find his niche in the shortest format of the game, but right now, as Australia makes plans and prepares for the World Cup next year, he should not be an automatic selection.The biggest problem for the Australian players such as Clarke who play all three forms of the game is a lack of T20 match practice. They do not play for their state sides and play only a handful of games at international level.The simple fact is that domestic players are better prepared for T20 than the mainstream Australian players.Cricket Australia is looking at all aspects of their cricket operations after the recent Ashes loss and also after their dismal efforts in the preceeding T20 World Cup. Australia crashed out of the tournament in stage 1, not even qualifying for the super 8s stage. The team was unbalanced and lacked T20 specialists. The game plan was hard to understand.Many issues will be addressed at the upcoming board meeting and undoubtedly the issue of the T20 captaincy will figure somewhere on the agenda.Victorian captain White has arrived as an Australian player in the shorter formats of the game, at least. He still needs some time before he becomes a Test regular, but he is making rapid progress.His record in T20 is very good at both domestic and international level. His batting strike rate of 150+ makes him an extremely dangerous player.Combine this with his ability to bowl some leg spin, safe hands and his developing leadership skills and he must be a serious chance to take the reins of the T20 team.He is one of the most experienced players in this format in the country and is ideally placed if and when the call comes to take the lead.
© 2009 The Sunday Age
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