Australia Cricket

There are fewer more terrifying prospects in cricket at the moment than facing a Mitchell Starc yorker.

But add into the mix the express pace of 160.4 kilometres per hour and the Australian left armer becomes all the more frightening with ball in hand.

Starc reached the mark during the third day of Australia's Test match against New Zealand at the WACA in Perth.

It translates into 99.67 miles per hour, agonisingly close to three figures, and is the fastest delivery ever bowled in test cricket, per Jon Pierik of the Sydney Morning Herald.

It's also just short of cricket's fastest ever recorded delivery, by Pakistan's Shoaib Akhtar in 2003, of 161.3 kph.

The yorker was dug out by New Zealand's Ross Taylor during a searing spell in which Starc also broke Brendon McCullum's bat.

Starc and New Zealand batting coach Craig McMillan shared a few laughs over the validity of the measurement after the day's play.

Hmmmm ... watch our recap of Mitch Starc's furious WACA spell on day three here: https://t.co/2m4NUWrBZs #AUSvNZ https://t.co/TqGz9J6L9x

— Cricket Video (@CricketVideo) November 15, 2015

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With so few international games in the month of September, there was little to choose from, but Pat Cummins takes home the prize of world cricket’s bowler of the month.

The fast bowler was instrumental in Australia beating England 3-2 in the one-day international series away from home, touching high pace and getting wickets.

At times, the English batsmen looked unable to deal with his pace and accuracy, while he was also able to find some movement through the air in helpful conditions.

Unfortunately, the strain proved to be too much for the injury-prone 22-year-old as he suffered another stress fracture, but he did some good work beforehand.

The injury means he will be out of action for several months recovering, although he is positive and feels he will return in time for the ICC World Twenty20 in March.

However, he can reflect on some strong performances in the month of September, which should give him plenty of heart moving forward.

September Performance Summary

Standout Performance

In the fourth ODI against hosts England at Headingley, Cummins looked in incredible form as he took four for 49 in 10 overs and very nearly hustled England to defeat.

The hosts went on to win by three wickets, but it was not for a lack of trying on Cummins' part.

Handed the new ball by captain Steven Smith, he dismissed Alex Hales off his second ball then removed Jason Roy shortly after as he looked to hit his stride.

He could not get another breakthrough until he had Eoin Morgan caught by Glenn Maxwell for 92, and he kept things interesting as he had Liam Plunkett caught by the same man.

It was not enough to force victory, but it showed Cummins at his rapid and accurate best, evidenced by a low economy rate of 4.9 runs per over.

The Coming Months

With his stress fracture, Cummins faces the prospect of several months on the sidelines recovering from yet another injury setback in his young career.

He will be motivated to appear in the ICC World Twenty20 in March, but until then, he must rebuild his fitness.

Hopefully he will come back even stronger.

If Australia learned anything during their recent Ashes defeat at the hands of England, it should be that they are not nearly as good as they think they are.

Steve Smith will begin his journey as captain of Australia with a trip to Bangladesh. While in years gone by teams would have seen this as an “easy” win, Bangladesh have come on leaps and bounds since then.

In recent months, the Tigers have pushed Pakistan, India and South Africa close, and with a wounded Aussie team, they have a chance to hammer home their point. Bangladesh will be helped by the fact that the Aussie team coming to their shores are having to make do without a number of their key players, with five senior men recently retiring.  

Michael Clarke, Brad Haddin, Chris Rogers, Ryan Harris and Shane Watson have all called it a day. Also out of the picture is David Warner, who is injured, while Mitchell Johnson and Josh Hazlewood are being rested.

This could very well be the best chance Bangladesh have ever had to beat the Aussies. The hosts have lost all four Tests they have played against Australia, but their recent record is far more impressive. With just two losses out of their last 12 home Tests and ODI series wins against Pakistan, India and South Africa, Bangladesh have reason to be confident.

Australia’s inexperienced team will have their work cut out for them on Bangladesh’s turning tracks and they could make life very uncomfortable for Smith. The Aussies are not sure on their batting lineup yet, but Smith dismissed the notion that they are simply using the tour as a way to trial new players as Australia go through another transitional phase.

The skipper was quoted by cricket.com.au as saying:

Every Test you play you want to win, you want to win very series you play, and it’s no different going to Bangladesh.

It’s going to be difficult playing over there, they’ve played some very good cricket in their own backyard. 

It’s going to be a tough tour but hopefully we prepare well and adapt to the conditions accordingly and have a successful tour.

While Smith has long been tipped as Clarke’s successor and will most likely stay in the job for the foreseeable future, a series loss against Bangladesh will be a very uncomfortable start. Despite their improvements recently, many will still consider Bangladesh to be a “small” team and the odds will almost certainly show that they are the underdogs heading into this series.

Smith and Co. have certainly not talked down their opposition, but a loss will still be considered a shock and will make the start to his captaincy career very awkward. The skipper has said he views this as an exciting time for Australian cricket.

We want to improve the way we play away from home and this is our first chance to do that.

The conditions can be quite foreign to what we’re used to in Australia so the guys will have to adapt right away and have plans in place to make sure they’re doing everything they can to make sure they have success over there.

We’ve got a bit of a clean slate with a lot of guys coming in and it’s a really exciting time for Australian cricket.

For Bangladesh, this series could be a defining moment. Should they manage to rattle Australia, they will finally be able to shake off the “minnows” tag that has followed them around for so long.   

England players gave retiring Australia captain Michael Clarke a guard of honour in his final Test as an international cricketer. 

Great stuff by the England players at The Oval #ThanksPup #Respect http://t.co/ajzwUoOc0m

— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) August 20, 2015

The fifth Ashes Test will be Clarke's 115th and last, having amassed 8,628 runs (plus whatever he can finish with at the Oval) with 28 centuries at an average of 49.30.

Here is England's guard of honour for @CricketAus skipper @MClarke23. Richly deserved for a Test cricket great #ashes pic.twitter.com/JODmwyaYL5

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) August 20, 2015

England's nice touch will unlikely be the last tribute to a great career.

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Australia captain Michael Clarke has announced that he will retire from international cricket following the climax of this year’s Ashes, which his side lost to England with one Test remaining.

The 34-year-old led the Aussies to a humiliating defeat by an innings and 78 runs, in the fourth Ashes Test on Saturday to confirm the hosts’ triumph, but he’ll be sticking around for the fifth and final Test on August 20—as per the Guardian:

I want to play the last Test at the Oval and give it one more crack. The time is right. You never want to walk away. My performances over the past 12 months have not been acceptable to me. I’ll take so many memories away. I’m looking forward to sitting and cheering the boys on. It’s the right time.

Although the 2015 series was a low point for Clarke, there’s no denying that the batsman has enjoyed one of the most fruitful careers in cricket history.

From leading Australia to being the No. 1-ranked Test side in the world and dishing England a painful whitewash in the 2013/14 Ashes, Clarke has been at the forefront of everything positive about Aussie cricket.

His batting has gotten them out of jail on endless occasions, while his leadership is something that presumptive new skipper Steve Smith will struggle to replicate.

Naturally, the praise came in thick and fast for Clarke, who broke down in tears during an interview as he revealed his decision to step down.

Former England spin bowler Graeme Swann and ex-skipper Michael Vaughan were among those applauding Clarke’s remarkable career:

His final bow will come at the famous Oval in a couple of weeks, where he’ll undoubtedly be looking to go out in style with a century or two.

So while England may have earned the bragging rights over the old enemy this time around, even they will stop and doff their caps to one of the greatest cricketers of his generation.

Australia ended up drawing their tour match with Derbyshire—hardly a surprise considering Day 2 was ruined by rain.

Resuming on 81 for two, the English county were bowled out for 259 in their first innings. 

It could have been a lot worse had it not been for some big hitting from Tony Palladino, with the seamer hammering 82 from 68 balls.

The tourists opted for some batting practice before the two teams agreed to shake hands, with captain Michael Clarke finishing up unbeaten on 44 out of his side's score of 95 for one.

Despite the lack of a positive outcome, there are still a few takeaways to be gleaned from Saturday's action. 

All seams well in the bowling department

Australia, quite rightly, opted to rest their Test attack for the trip to Derby.

Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Johnson and Mitchell Starc were all given the chance to rest up ahead of the third Test at Edgbaston, while spinner Nathan Lyon was also allowed to take a break.

The one Test member on duty was Mitchell Marsh. He showed his value with the ball in the second Test at Lord's with three important wickets, and he carried on his form with four Derbyshire wickets.

The all-rounder—who made a half-century in Australia's first-innings total of 413 for nine—bowled an impressive 70 dot balls in his 15 overs.

Pat Cummins only picked up a wicket, but the paceman will benefit from getting through 17 overs. He had not played in a first-class fixture for two years.

The performances of both bowlers show Australia's cupboard is overflowing with seam bowlers.

Clarke gets another chance

Australia's captain opened for his team in the second innings, making an unbeaten 44.

The right-hander hit eight fours during his 74-ball knock; though he was fortunate to survive an early chance that afforded him some extra time at the crease.

In his report for ESPN Cricinfo, Daniel Brettig writes: "His feet appeared more inclined to movement than they have been for some time, particularly after he threw his hands at a delivery from Will Davis that was dropped by the wicketkeeper Harvey Hosein, denying the 19-year-old debutant the prize of taking Clarke's wicket for the second time in the match."

Clarke has so far managed 81 runs in the Ashes series, with his average of 27 helped by an unbeaten 32 when setting up a declaration on Day 4 at Lord's.

He will still be desperate to make a contribution against England this summer, but his 96 minutes out in the middle against Derby won't have done him any harm.

Rogers makes a great waiter

Perhaps the most important thing for Australia on Day 3 didn't actually happen to anyone involved in the match.

While Chris Rogers was unable to take the field against Derbyshire—one of his former employers—the opener was fit enough to run out drinks for his team-mates.

The opening batsman was forced to retire hurt during Day 4 of the second Test after suffering a dizzy spell.

However, Australia's team doctor Peter Brukner is hopeful Rogers could still feature in the next Test at Edgbaston, per BBC Sport: "Chris will increase his level of activity over the next days and be monitored."

Rogers will be desperate to play in Birmingham: Although he made 173 and 49 not out in the last Test, the left-hander will be loath to give up his place in the XI, particularly after Shaun Marsh made a century against Derbyshire.

The unlikely batting hero

Palladino seems to like facing Australian bowling.

He made his one-and-only first-class century against Australia A at the same venue in 2012, hitting 106 after being sent in as a nightwatchman.

On that occasion, the seam bowler enjoyed himself against an attack that included Johnson and Starc.

In 2015, he took a particular liking to Fawad Ahmed.

However, the leg-spinner had the last laugh, getting Palladino caught by substitute fielder Lyon.

Still, the tail-ender's big hitting provided some entertainment on an otherwise mundane day of cricket. 

Australia's only real selection conundrum ahead of the forthcoming third Ashes Test at Edgbaston, England, is behind the stumps, with Brad Haddin and Peter Nevill battling for the job.

At the start of the tour, veteran Haddin was one of the first names on the Baggy Green's teamsheet; however, one bad performance and one unfortunate absence later and his international career is on the ropes.

But will Darren Lehman really bring down the axe on one of his most experienced men and keep faith with Nevill who has played just 56 first-class games and, at the age of 29, is far from a spring chicken?

The story so far

So often England's lower-order scourge, Haddin had a nightmare in this summer's opening Ashes encounter at Cardiff, scoring just 29 runs and dropping Joe Root who went on to register an emphatic century.

After missing the second Test at Lord's for personal reasons, his understudy Nevill swept in impressively, contributing a nerveless 45 and taking seven catches in the one-sided victory.

Of course, Haddin will feel a little hard done by missing what was clearly, compared to Wales, a much more impressive team performance, but Nevill looked extremely comfortable at cricket's highest level.

Both players are currently playing in the Baggy Green's tour game against Derbyshire, which is their only fixture before next week's encounter in Birmingham, but rain has heavily impacted the contest.

The Aussies did manage to complete their first innings, with Haddin registering a fluent 32 compared to Nevill's score of just one, but no play was possible on Day 2.

First-class record

Nevill was just 14 years old when Haddin made his New South Wales first-class debut in 1999, and since then the veteran has racked up 183 appearances, 9,900 runs and 648 dismissals.

Comparatively, the 29-year-old Nevill has only made 56 first-class appearances since beginning his professional career in 2008, but boasts an impressive average of 44.30.

This includes a monumental innings of 235 not out against Tasmania in this year's Sheffield Shield competition where he also won the Steve Waugh medal for being New South Wales' best player.

Interestingly, both men play for the same State, and when Haddin makes a rare domestic appearance, Nevill usually makes way behind the stumps and operates as a pure batsman.

Playing style

On the pitch, the pair have drastically contrasting styles. Haddin is a pugnacious, in-your-face type character who can be fairly outspoken on and off the pitch.

With the bat he can score runs quickly and in an unorthodox fashion, making him a very dangerous late-order customer. He's the sort of player who can have opposition players and fans pulling their hair out.

Boasting a more classical technique, Nevill is a more traditional batsman who likes to play straight, but, as evidenced by his huge Sheffield Shield double century, he is capable of occupying the crease for a very long time.

These days wicketkeepers are judged as much by their batting as they are their glovework, but both of these men, despite Haddin's glaring drop of Root, are world-class stumpers with no obvious weakness.

Summary

So, given that Nevill has been donning the gloves against Derbyshire, it appears Lehman has made his choice as to who will don the gloves against England at Edgbaston, signalling a changing of the guard.

But it wouldn't be a huge surprise if Haddin, who up until recently was the Baggy Green's vice-captain, came back into the side.

Who do you think should get the nod? Let us know by voting in our poll or registering your thoughts in the comments section.