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Weatherald dropped from second Bangladesh Test squad; Renshaw called in
๐Ÿ‡ด๐Ÿ‡ฒ Oman /Sports

Weatherald dropped from second Bangladesh Test squad; Renshaw called in

From Times of Oman · () English

Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Australia dropped opener Jake Weatherald from their squad for the second Test against Bangladesh due to his continued struggles.
  • Matthew Renshaw has been called up to replace Weatherald, who has scored only 224 runs in six Tests since his debut.
  • Coach Andrew McDonald commented on changes to Weatherald's technique, while Renshaw has a strong record at the Mackay venue.

Australia has replaced struggling opener Jake Weatherald with Matthew Renshaw for the second and final ICC World Test Championship match against Bangladesh. Weatherald was dropped after scoring just 23 and 0 in the first Test, continuing a poor run of form since his international debut last year. He has accumulated only 224 runs in six Tests at an average of 20.36, with a single half-century.

Coach Andrew McDonald acknowledged that Weatherald's technique had undergone some "tweakings." He noted that it is difficult to assess the effectiveness of these changes with small sample sizes, especially when the batter was dismissed by dragging the ball on or driving at it. McDonald confirmed that some technical adjustments were made.

Yeah, there was some change to Jake in terms of where he lined up and his movement patterns.

โ€” Andrew McDonaldAustralia coach Andrew McDonald discussing Jake Weatherald's technical adjustments.

Matthew Renshaw, a left-handed batter, is a potential replacement and has a proven track record at the Mackay Cricket Association Stadium, where he has scored two first-class centuries. Renshaw last played a Test three years ago against India, featuring in 14 matches with a century and three fifties. He also had a strong Sheffield Shield season for Queensland, averaging nearly 50 with three centuries.

Josh Inglis is another option to open alongside Travis Head. The wicketkeeper-batter has primarily played in the middle order but impressed with knocks of 40 and 125* against England Lions last year, putting him in contention for a top-order role. The Australian squad for the second Test includes Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, and Beau Webster.

It is always hard to critique small sample sizes on whether it holds up (at international level). He dragged one on and drove at one in the first innings and was dismissed; it's probably harder with that smaller sample size to say, 'Yep, that is going to hold up under pressure'. But there was some change though.

โ€” Andrew McDonaldAustralia coach Andrew McDonald on the difficulty of assessing technical changes with limited data.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Times of Oman in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.