Published: Dec 27, 2014, 02:27 AM (IST)
Edited: Dec 27, 2014, 10:40 AM (IST)
Even as Australia have taken a 2-0 lead over India in the four-Test series, vice-captain Brad Haddin’s terrible form with the bat has shown no signs of letting up. His susceptibility to the short ball has been well exploited by the Indian bowlers. Does he have it in him to reverse his form? If he doesn’t, will the selectors be generous enough to hand him another chance? Rishad DSouza ponders.
All has not been well with Brad Haddin. The 37-year-old-wicketkeeper has been in poor form with the bat ever since the 2013-14 Ashes series at home which saw Australia crush England 5-0. Mitchell Johnson was undoubtedly the hero of the series, David Warner was very good and all Australians contributed to England’s humiliation in some way or the other. But whenever Australia did find themselves in trouble, Haddin would come to the rescue with significant contributions at the end.
The purple patch has since turned its back on Haddin; he has struggled with the bat. In the series against South Africa in early 2014 he averaged a pathetic 6.50 and in the next series against Pakistan in UAE he didn’t manage too much better, averaging 11.25. And in the ongoing series against India he has averaged 14.66. Fortunately for him, his constant failures have not undergone severe scrutiny as Australia have continued to perform well in the longest format. But his lack of form may not have gone un-noticed by the team management.
During the first Test of the India-Australia series, Michael Clarke contracted a right hamstring injury that forced him out of the match as well as the remainder of the series. Haddin who has been an able vice-captain to Clarke assumed the captaincy role for the match. All expected Haddin would continue to be captain in absence of Clarke but that was not to be.
Steven Smith was announced captain ahead of the veteran. Was this a subtle indication by Australian authorities that Haddin was nearing the end of the line? They said they had the future in mind when appointing Smith as captain. Brad Haddin himself hailed it as an ‘outstanding’ decision, and given his reputation he probably did view it as a brilliant opportunity to groom Steven Smith as captain for the future.
But deep down he may have sensed another meaning to the decision – to sack him if his poor run continued. Young wicketkeepers such as Mathew Wade and Tim Paine will be eager to make it to the Test team and if Haddin doesn’t put some runs on the board, it will be unfair to keep the youngsters waiting any longer.
On the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), the Indian bowlers knew just what they had to do when Haddin walked out to the middle – bowl short and bowl short they did. Haddin employed a funny technique to counter the barrage of short balls. He walked across his stumps and tried to nudge the short balls down the leg side. His struggle was evident, the technique didn’t look too pretty but it served well enough for Brad Haddin to not lose his wicket. Day’s play ended with Haddin on a 23 not-out, an edgy start but a start nonetheless and he’ll be keen to captalise and dash any plans by selectors to axe him.
Haddin has been a faithful servant of Australian cricket. He has rescued his team from dire situations on multiple occassions. A cricketer of his caliber should be able to retire respectfully on his own terms, but if he fails to break free from the shackles of bad form, the selectors may be forced to deny him that opportunity.
(Rishad D’Souza, a reporter with CricketCountry, gave up hopes of playing Test cricket after a poor gully-cricket career. He now reports on the sport. You can follow @RishadDsouza on Twitter)
