Australia's ageing team lacks clear successors, raising concerns
Cummins, Hazlewood injuries test Australia's fast bowling depth
Selectors criticised for not risking simultaneous retirements
By Nick Mulvenney
SYDNEY, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Australia are favourites to retain the Ashes over the next two months but anything short of their usual dominance over England on home soil is sure to reignite the debate over the pace of transition to a younger generation.
Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja and Travis Head are all in their mid to late 30s and form the core of the team bidding to keep hold of the urn for another 18 months.
It would be a surprise, however, if all seven were still around when Australia tour South Africa next September, let alone when the Ashes rivalry resumes in England in 2027.
That so many have reached such an advanced stage of their careers without obvious replacements is certainly a reflection of their quality, but will be a matter of concern in the case of more injuries during the series.
"No doubt, (the selectors) are conscious they have half a dozen or so guys coming pretty close to the end of their careers," former captain Greg Chappell said.
"It's a matter of having the replacements available, that's the difficult part of it."
Another former captain, Steve Waugh, launched a shot at George Bailey in the run-up to the Ashes, accusing the head selector of failing to take tough decisions and allowing senior players to pick the side.
"You just want to make sure that three or four players don't go out at the same time. That leaves a big hole in the team," he said.
"So they've got to just make sure that it is a transition, but not all at once."
CUMMINS AND HAZLEWOOD INJURED
Australia's fast bowling stocks will definitely be tested in the series opener with skipper Cummins and Hazlewood -- both members of the triumvirate that has kept Australia near the top of the test world rankings for a decade -- absent injured.
Scott Boland, 36, will win his 15th cap bowling with 35-year-old Starc in Perth, while Brendan Doggett looks set to earn his first at the age of 31, the only quick to debut for Australia since 2021.
It was at the top of the batting order that Waugh's criticism was mainly aimed, however, with the suggestion the job of identifying a successor to David Warner, who retired from tests in January last year, had been botched.
Usman Khawaja, who will be 39 during the series, remains a lock-in as one opener despite diminishing returns from a career that started in the last test England won on Australian soil in 2011.
Youngsters Sam Konstas and Nathan McSweeney have been tried and discarded for now, and it looks like the uncapped Jake Weatherald or 31-year-old Marnus Labuschagne will walk out with Khawaja in Perth.
"NOBODY TEST READY"
Chappell, who is optimistic about the talent emerging in Australia, thinks players need to be given time to prove themselves at test level.
"There is nobody that's ever been a test-ready player straight out of domestic cricket," he said.
"Domestic cricket is where you identify yourself as someone who's got a chance and then if you're selected, you get to find out whether you're good enough to make that next step and take those challenges."
Spin-bowling great Shane Warne's retirement in 2007 triggered a protracted search for a replacement that only came to an end when Lyon was given his test chance in 2011.
The off-spinner will turn 38 during the Ashes but has no concerns about Australia's ageing side, and no intention of calling it quits any time soon.
"I feel like age is just a number," he said. "I still feel like I am yet to play my best cricket."
(Reporting by Nick Mulvenney, editing by Ed Osmond)
((Nick.Mulvenney@tr.com [Nick.Mulvenney@tr.com]; +61 403 574 069;))
