Bangladesh’s stunning nine-wicket win over Australia in the Darwin Test has laid bare several of the hosts’ deficiencies. With an ageing squad, the Kangaroos have the daunting task ahead of playing 21 Tests in the space of a year. Australian fast-bowling legend Jason Gillespie, in an exclusive interaction with , shared his views on the team’s performance against Bangladesh and the road ahead.

Excerpts:

What did you think of Australia’s performance?

Pat Cummins’ captaincy was fine, but Australia batted poorly in the first innings. Bangladesh outplayed them throughout the game. They played old-fashioned, patient Test cricket. Australia will bounce back strongly in Mackay. However, this is an ageing team, and selectors will bring in new players over the next 6-12 months.

For now, they have got in Matt Renshaw in place of Jake Weatherald for the Mackay Test. Other than that, the only discussion will be whether Scott Boland plays; I’m not sure if that’s in place of one of the seamers or the spinner. But Australia will bounce back strongly. The surface will be very good at Mackay.

What did you make of the pace trio’s (Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood) performance?

They’ve been great. I thought they bowled quite well in the first Test. But Bangladesh just batted very, very well. I think that if they bowl the same way again, they’ll have a chance to perform better against Bangladesh.

Australian players Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc dejected following Australia’s nine wicket loss to Bangladesh.

Bangladesh’s seamers were good as well. They deserved to win. Tanzid Hasan got a hundred and other batters contributed to get a lead in the first innings. Some good signs for Bangladesh… Their challenge now is to back that up. And the Australians will want to bounce back from what was a pretty disappointing performance.

Where do you stand on the Scott Boland vs Josh Hazlewood debate?

Story continues below this ad

Hazlewood for me. He proved why he was picked (with a 6/89 in the first innings). Boland is a very good bowler; there’s no doubt about that. But Hazlewood has over 300 Test wickets. So for me, Hazlewood deserved that opportunity.

What is going wrong with Marnus Labuschagne?

He looked okay in Darwin in the second innings for his 31 runs. But he’s just finding ways to get out. He finds himself nicking the ball behind the wicket quite regularly and gets out caught playing at balls outside the off stump. He needs to score runs in Mackay, else his spot will definitely be in jeopardy.

There are several players waiting in the wings. There’s young lad Ollie Peake, Jayden Goodwin from Western Australia, Campbell Kellaway, and Sam Konstas. These players will all be seen as potential options going forward. If Marnus fails, I don’t know who they’re going to pick. But they’re all up-and-coming young players.

Story continues below this ad

Why are so many Australian domestic batters averaging less than 40?

The pitches are prepared too much in favour of seam bowlers, as well as the extra lacquer on the Kookaburra ball.

Then how do you pick batters?

This is where selectors need to look at the attributes they believe can succeed at the Test level, not just statistics. It is the art of selection. Just looking at numbers, at cold hard stats, that’s not selection, because then you just let the stats person do that. The art of selection is identifying attributes and traits and skill sets that you think can succeed at the next level.

What are the batting and spin options for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy?

Story continues below this ad

Look, Matt Renshaw is a nice player. He has patience and technique, like Usman Khawaja did. He’s learnt a lot. Peter Handscomb, he’s a bit older, but he’s a very good spin player. So several options are floating around Australian cricket.

Corey Rocchiccioli, an off-spinner from Western Australia, is a very fine bowler. Lloyd Pope and Tanveer Sangha are good leg-spin options.

What do you think of Cameron Green’s future?

He played very well in the second innings (scored 104) at Darwin, but he’s got to back it up with consistent performances. He’s played 38 Test matches now, he’s played a lot of cricket. He needs to move away from being a potential player to being a consistent performer. And if he can do that, then he’ll have a long career.

Who are the next potential long-term fast bowlers?

Callum Viddler from Queensland looks a good prospect. He bowls quick with good airspeed. Then you’ve got Jhye Richardson from Western Australia. There are a couple of South Australians who’ve performed well over the last little period: Nathan McAndrew and Jordan Buckingham. There are a few different options for the Australian selectors to look at, going forward.