Michael Hussey, a former middle-order batsman for Australia, thinks Mitchell Marsh will have difficulty replacing David Warner at the top order of the Test cricket. The West Australian thinks Warner deserves to be replaced with a conventional opener.
As Warner is retiring from Test cricket after the ongoing series against Pakistan, there is already a buzz in the cricket world about seeing Mitch Marsh as a replacement for David Warner. On which Mitch Marsh stated that accepting the position “doesn’t make sense” to him.
Candidates are already being sought after by Cricket Australia. Marcus Harris, Matt Renshaw, and Cameron Bancroft are the front-runners. Harris excelled in the most recent practice match against Pakistan, but Bancroft and Renshaw have kept making plenty of runs in first-class cricket.
“I would be going for a traditional opener, if I was selecting”- Michael Hussey
Michael Hussey told reporters on Tuesday that Warner’s replacement should only come from an experienced batter because opening the innings is a specialized role. According to Hussey, Marsh need to remain in the middle order.
As quoted by ESPN Cricinfo,
“Opening is one of the toughest jobs in the game. So for me personally, if I was selecting, I’d be going for a traditional, proper opener. Someone who has done it for a long period of time. I’m not saying you can’t do it, and maybe someone could evolve into doing that role,” he stated.
Michael Hussey went on to say that he knows that there has been talk about him going up to the order, but Hussey believes that Marsh is probably more suited in the middle order, much like Travis Head.
“But I think it would be difficult for a player like Mitch Marsh or someone – I know there’s been talk about him going up the order. I think he’s probably more suited, much like Travis Head, to be in the middle-order. I think that’d be the best for the balance of the Australian team,” he elaborated.
“I hope they give a reward to the person who has been doing really well”- Michael Hussey
Michael Hussey stated that he doesn’t want to say that it would be this guy or this guy. Further, he said that it’s a tough job for selectors to find an ideal replacement for David Warner.
“I like whoever’s dominating the level below, who’s been dominating in Sheffield Shield cricket over a period of time, and to be fair, they all have at various stages. So it’s a tough job for the selectors. I don’t want to stand here and say it should be this guy or this guy,” he added.
Michael Hussey also hopes that the selectors will give players who have been dominating the Sheffield Shield competition a chance to increase the weight of the competition.
“I hope that they reward the guy that’s been performing very well at Sheffield Shield cricket. I think that sends a great message to the competition,” he further stated.
Warner, on the other hand, will retire this month having amassed over 8000 Test runs and 26 hundreds, the most recent of which came in the opening Test against Pakistan.
Australia won by a massive 360 runs because of David Warner’s 164 from 211 balls in the first inning to take the lead by 1-0 in the three-match test series.
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