Cricket Australia (CA) selected Cameron Bancroft for the next two Test series against the West Indies, which start on January 17, despite his protests, as expressed by Australia veteran Tom Moody. Australia was searching for a replacement for the devastating southpaw David Warner, who had retired. The renowned batter will open for the first time in his illustrious Test career after Steven Smith voiced his desire to do so and CA acknowledged it.
Cameron Green, who had been occupying the number four spot, will now start alongside Smith and Usman Khawaja. The 34-year-old previously occupied that position. Matthew Renshaw, the Queensland opener, has also been called up by CA and is now included in the 13-man roster that was revealed on Wednesday, January 10, as an “extra batter.” It also suggests that, after Marcus Harris and Bancroft, he could be the next possible opener. Warner, though, had before advanced the idea of replacing him with Harris, a left-hander.
In the meantime, Tom Moody expressed his distress over Bancroft’s non-selection on X.
Although choosing a candidate is never simple, Cameron Bancroft’s mistake is startling. His first-class stats compared to his peers are so striking that it seems like he has a hidden objective, which I hope he was told straight! Moody wrote on X, “#Bancroft.”
View the post on X from Tom Moody.
Selection is never an easy task but the oversight of Cameron Bancroft is shocking.
His first class numbers are so compelling against his peers it feels there is another agenda which I hope was communicated to him honestly! #Bancroft— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) January 9, 2024
With almost 9000 runs, Cameron Bancroft’s first-class cricket stats are impressive.
With almost 9000 runs amassed in 146 appearances, Cameron Bancroft has an outstanding first-class cricket career. With a strike rate of 42.89 and an average of 39.04, the 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batter has amassed 25 hundreds.
In the 2018 Cape Town Test, Bancroft’s involvement in the historic Sandpapergate affair dealt a serious blow to his international career, even though he had made his Test debut in November 2017. His test career was prematurely ended when he was imposed a nine-month ban. In August 2019, he made his final appearance in an Ashes Test, which was the second Test of the series.
Australia Test Squad vs. West Indies:
Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, and Mitchell Starc.
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