Injury toll mounts, death overs a worry – Australia's takeaways from South Africa

They gave up 96 runs in the final 10 overs in Potchefstroom, 173 at Centurion and 113 at Johannesburg. It would be easy to write it off as confirmation of Cummins and Starc’s importance to the side but that would blindly ignore the form of Hazlewood and Zampa.Both returned career-worst ODI figures in the series. Hazlewood did so twice in back-to-back games. Australia’s catching was to blame in the final game with Zampa and Green both executing well only for three key opportunities to be grassed. But execution was the issue in the other games and Australia’s death bowling since the last ODI World Cup is not a strength. They are second-last for economy rate in the death overs over the last four years among the World Cup qualifiers, ahead of only New Zealand.!function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}();

Middle-order malaiseThere was a stark contrast between the quality of the two middle-orders in the series and this is not a new problem for Australia. The absence of Smith and Maxwell meant that there was a need to experiment and Green’s concussion in game one did not help their cause in terms of bedding down roles ahead of the World Cup.The middle and lower-order capitulated in every game barring the Marnus Labuschagne-Ashton Agar partnership in game one after the top-order collapsed, and the collapses came against both spin and pace across the series. In Potchefstroom, they were 140 for 1 in the 15th over and were bowled out 227. Even in the game two win in Bloemfontein Australia were 343 for 3 with 43 balls to go and lost 5 for 49.Even more troubling are the overall returns of Australia’s middle-order batters in the last four years. Only Pakistan, Netherlands and Afghanistan have lower averages in the middle-order, and only Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have a lower strike-rate of the teams with better averages.!function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var e=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var t in a.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}();

Two of Australia’s major middle-order pillars in that time have been Alex Carey and Stoinis and both have been short on runs. Carey did find some form with an outstanding 99 in a losing cause at Centurion but his next highest score in the series was 12. He has averaged 30.64 at a strike-rate of only 86.75 since the last World Cup where he was one of Australia’s best players. Stoinis’ returns with the bat have been bleak in the same period, even including the 2019 World Cup. He has not made an ODI half-century in his last 31 ODI innings dating back to March 2019, and has averaged just 16.37.Stoinis has bowled well in ODIs this year, particularly with the new ball but it has reached a point now where if he is not available to bowl due to a need to be rested, as was the case in two of the five games in this series, he is not in Australia’s best XI. Labuschagne was not in World Cup calculations ahead of the series but he has been Australia’s most prolific ODI middle-order player over the last four years. He enhanced his reputation with 80 not out and 124 in the first two games of the series and could well force his way into the final World Cup squad with Head’s untimely injury.But even with Labuschange’s improved intent, there is a lack of firepower if Smith, Labuschagne and Carey occupy three spots from No.3-7 when compared with what South Africa’s middle-order of Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller delivered in this series.Structure of the best XI now in a state of fluxAustralia wanted to have three combinations that could all be used during the World Cup. One option was to play with eight batters, including four allrounders, and three specialist bowlers. The other two options were using seven batters and four bowlers, alternating between playing two quicks and two spinners or three quicks and one spinner.But the cumulative effect of all the issues leaves holes in all three combinations. Agar’s fitness and absence in the lead-up to the World Cup means playing two spinners might not be an option. Even if he is fit, it would mean leaving out one of captain Cummins or Hazlewood if Starc is locked in as the first-choice quick.Playing three quicks would be a risk on certain surfaces in India, and that risk is compounded if neither Maxwell or Head are fit to play and able to contribute with their off-spin. Playing eight batters and four all-rounders does strengthen the batting in theory. But the form of the middle order is still a concern, and it leaves Australia exposed with the ball at the death, like they were in South Africa.