Australia suffered a heavy defeat in the first test match against India in Nagpur after the Indian spinners skittled them out for below-par scores in both innings of the test match. More than the bowlers, the Aussie camp will be worried about the performance of its batsmen, who failed to put up any significant fight in either inning. Although the 2nd test match of the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2023 is scheduled to begin on February 17, the Australian team management must have already started joining the missing links to put up a strong performance.
Barring the debutant Todd Murphy, no other Australian player seemed to have the hunger to put up any fight against the spirited Indian at home. Based on their performances, here is the list of players who we feel might be dropped from the 2nd test of BGT 2022-23.
Matt Renshaw
Matt Renshaw is one of the Australian players who will be certainly dropped from playing 11 of the second test of BGT 2023. Renshaw had a nightmarish outing in the 1st test match in Nagpur with returns of 0 and 2 from 2 innings. The Aussie fans were furious at his selection for the Nagpur test match instead of Travis Head who has been their best middle-order batsman last year. Although Head does not boast of a good record in the subcontinent, he is Australia’s best bet given his recent form in the middle-order.
Peter Handscomb
Peter Handscomb is Australia’s most experienced batsman after Steve Smith and Usman Khawaja. However, his below-average performance in the first test match means he is another player who might be asked to warm the bench in the next test match in Delhi. Handscomb aggregated 37 runs in the test match across innings. If Cameron Green is declared fit for the Delhi test match, Handscomb will have to make way for him.
Scott Boland
Although Scott Boland remained wicketless in the first test match, he was the only Australian seamer who looked threatening on a slow pitch. However, it seems highly likely that he will have to make way for Mitchell Starc in the second test match if the left-arm pacer is declared fit. It might look like a harsh decision given the fact that he did create chances in Nagpur, which either were dropped or fell short. But if an experienced campaigner like Mitchell Starc is available for selection in Delhi, then Boland will be warming the bench along with the other players mentioned in this list.