Selectors drop Hughes down order

Written By Unknown on Senin, 30 Desember 2013 | 23.41

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ALEX Doolan's selection in a 14-man squad for Sydney highlights just how far Phil Hughes has been banished from Test cricket.

One of the best performed players in the Sheffield Shield this season, Hughes clearly has more to prove after being one of the victims from Australia's 3-0 loss in England.

With Australia aiming for a 5-0 whitewash in the fifth and final Test at the SCG, beginning on Friday, Doolan has been picked as cover for Shane Watson, who suffered a minor groin injury in Melbourne.

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Permanent 12th-man James Faulkner remains in the squad and may play if Watson is ruled out or cannot bowl, while fast bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile remains on standby for Ryan Harris and his dodgy knee. Doug Bollinger has been released from the squad.

While Watson was restricted with his bowling, he played a pivotal innings at the MCG on Sunday, scoring 83 not out to ensure an easy eight-wicket victory in the fourth Test.

The selectors have had their eye on Doolan for two seasons now but have chosen him at a time when his form has tapered off significantly.

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After scoring 56 and 132 for Tasmania against a NSW team led by Michael Clarke to start the Sheffield Shield season, Doolan then had eight first class innings under 50, with five of them under 20.

He came good with 75 in his last Shield innings before the Big Bash hiatus began three weeks ago.

While Doolan has 391 Shield runs at 39 this season with the one hundred, Hughes has 549 at 61, with three hundreds including a double century.

Hughes is also three years younger than Doolan, having just turned 25, but the left hander's topsy turvey Test career so far has left the selectors nonplussed.

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In 26 Tests Hughes has three centuries at an average of 33.

The experiment of playing the regular opening batsman down the order proved unsuccessful, particularly against spin.

On spinner-friendly wickets in India and England he often struggled with off-spinners turning the ball away from him.

The best way for Hughes to regain his place appears to be replacing 36-year-old Chris Rogers at the top of the order but that looks unlikely any time soon after Rogers scored a match-winning century in Melbourne just two days ago.

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Tall and elegant, Doolan looks a fine player but often fails to turn nice starts into big scores.

The best example this season was opening the batting for Australia A against England early last month in a tour match badly marred by rain.

He made a sparkling 31 from just 35 balls, hitting five fours from confident drives as his opening partner Michael Klinger struggled.

Yet Doolan was bowled by a Jimmy Anderson off-cutter which went sailing through a big gap.

The Tasmanian first came to notice early last season when he scored an unbeaten 161 for Australia A against South Africa.

It remains his highest score and is one of just six centuries he has made in 53 first class matches while averaging 38.

Hughes has 24 centuries in 106 first class matches and averages 45.


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