Former England quick Stuart Broad has questioned how Australia can head into the Ashes later this year with their current top-order lineup, describing it as the most “muddled” he has seen in his lifetime. Though he was critical, Broad did back Sam Konstas to feature in November’s Ashes opener in Perth.
Australia will wrap up their Tests before the Ashes with a pink-ball clash against West Indies in Jamaica starting Saturday. The top three spots have been a revolving door lately: Marnus Labuschagne opened briefly in the WTC final, while Cameron Green has batted No. 3 since Lord’s. Konstas has struggled, scoring just 3, 5, 25, and 0 so far, and Usman Khawaja’s form remains patchy.
Broad Questions Selection Stability
“𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏’𝒕 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔,” 𝑩𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒅 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒅𝒄𝒂𝒔𝒕. “𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒍𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐𝒑 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒆𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆. 𝑰’𝒗𝒆 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒖𝒑 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑯𝒂𝒚𝒅𝒆𝒏, 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓, 𝑷𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈… 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕.”
While praising Konstas’ promise, Broad said the youngster needs time:
“He’s young and learning. You hear the crunch off the bat, but a couple of low scores and you start questioning yourself.”
Di Venuto Urges Patience
Australia batting coach Michael Di Venuto defended the line-up, noting how difficult batting conditions have been in the Caribbean and acknowledging that the team hasn’t functioned consistently.
“We don’t hide behind the fact that we’ve relied on individual brilliance. Batting averages have come down,” he said.
𝑫𝒊 𝑽𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒎𝒑𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒊𝒛𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝑲𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒓𝒐𝒘: “𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏’𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌 𝒍𝒊𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕. 𝑺𝒕𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝑾𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒐𝒐𝒌 27 𝑻𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒉𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒅.”
Australia’s top three have averaged just under 27 since early 2024, ranking them mid-table globally. Di Venuto added that modern conditions are far more challenging than in previous eras, making consistent runs harder to come by.
Pink Ball Challenge Awaits
Conditions in Jamaica could test batters further. Australia had their first hit with the pink Dukes ball at Sabina Park this week, and players looked unsettled by its movement and bounce. West Indies will get their own chance to train under the lights before the Test begins.
Despite criticism from former players like Ian Healy, Di Venuto insists patience is vital as Australia’s batters navigate a tricky era of Test cricket.
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