Bailey selection a no-brainer

Australia today named their squad ahead of the first Ashes Test against England, notably including left-arm paceman Mitchell Johnson and uncapped batsman George Bailey.

Although Bailey is yet to make his Test debut, the 31-year-old Tasmanian has a wealth of international experience, having skippered both the ODI and t20 sides. Bailey’s form in limited-overs cricket has given the Australian selectors little choice but to pick him and he will surely slot straight into the XI at no.6.

Having been selected ahead of fellow Tasmanian Alex Doolan because of his superior international pedigree, the consistency of Bailey’s performances since his debut in March 2012 has been extremely impressive. In his 35 one-day matches for Australia, Bailey has scored 1539 runs at an average of 54.96, with only India’s Virat Kohli scoring more ODI runs in that time period. In addition, in their recent one-day series, Bailey made four scores of 80+ against India, including a knock of 156 from 114 balls.

But despite his emphatic form for Australia over the past year, Bailey made only 256 runs at 18.28 in the domestic Sheffield Shield competition and thus question marks remain over whether he can replicate his form in the shorter formats in Test cricket. National selector John Inverarity was quick to point out that in the previous Down Under, Bailey made 697 Shield runs at a significantly healthier average of 58.08.

Regardless of the statistics, it is clear that Bailey oozes international quality and possesses all the necessary skills to be successful in the Test arena. England’s bowlers found themselves on the receiving end of his powerful stroke play at the back end of the summer, when Bailey made scores of 82, 87 and 4 in the NatWest ODI series. Subsequently, Bailey will know what to expect from this current England attack and he will be extremely confident that he has the ability to score runs against it.

Whilst he is widely known for his powerful stroke play, Bailey’s technique is solid and he is compact in defence. His attacking instincts are perfectly suited to the aggressive brand of Test cricket Australia will look to play. Alongside Chris Rogers, David Warner, Shane Watson, Michael Clarke, Steve Smith and wicket-keeper Brad Haddin, Bailey’s inclusion means the Australian batting line-up suddenly looks strong and balanced. The Baggie Greens’ Achilles heel in England was their inconsistent batting line-up, which subsequently produced erratic batting displays. However, their weakness in the summer could prove to be their greatest strength this time around.

Thus with his recent form against India in mind, Bailey is a player who could play a critical role in Australia’s attempts to regain the Ashes. His form alone demands that his is one of the first names on the team sheet for the first Test at The Gabba.