Last Updated on 3 weeks by Charbel Coorey
Ricky Ponting believes Australia must be clear on a succession plan given most of the current Test team is aged 30 years and over. The former captain fears the Test team will face multiple retirements at once. This will leave a huge hole that numerous inexperienced players will need to fill at the highest level.
The selectors have been hesistant to give younger players a go in recent years. They have chosen either to stick with experienced underperformers or bring in players who are above 30 themselves. Management were quick to leave 25-year-old Nathan McSweeney and 19-year-old Sam Konstas out of the XI against India and Sri Lanka respectively last summer, while other out-of-form seniors, including Usman Khawaja and previously David Warner, were under less scrutiny despite extended periods of lean returns.
Cameron Green was the only player under 30 in the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against South Africa. Konstas joined him in the West Indies after Marnus Labuschagne was dropped.
Australia are likely to opt for experience in the quest to retain the Ashes. Scott Boland is on standby should Pat Cummins miss any Tests due to a back problem. Also, 30-year-old Jake Weatherald is a strong chance due to his prolific returns since the start of last year’s Sheffield Shield.
Ricky Ponting on succession plan: “Five or six may go at once”
However, Ponting has urged Australia to think about the ramifications of too many players retiring at once.
“Yes, I think it is (important to start blooding new talent). But it’s heading down that path now where we might see five or six of them go at once,” Ponting told CODE Sports. “I think this could be Khawaja’s last summer; he could be one of the first ones to go.
“The bowling group has been together and been successful for so long, Cricket Australia (also) needs to manage that. I’m sure they’ve had discussions around that already, and if they haven’t, they should’ve.”
Ponting experienced this himself in the late 2000s. The Test team went through a lull after a number of legends retired.
“I was there when it happened to me as captain when we had Gilly (Adam Gilchrist), Matt (Hayden), McGrath, Warne, Langer move on together, no team wants that,” Ponting said.
“it’s heading down that path now where we might see five or six of them go at once”
Ricky Ponting on Australia’s conundrum
It has been a balancing act for selectors in recent years given the success of the Australian team. However, critics believe they have stuck with the likes of Warner and Khawaja too long instead of blooding in younger players. Also, selectors have stuck with the core group of fast bowlers even in situations where a series has been wrapped up.
The first Test against England begins in Perth on November 21. The first few rounds of the Sheffield Shield will be crucial in confirming selections in the Australian XI.
