Michael Clarke has intensified his criticism of Australia's cricket selection committee, urging with the individuals in charge to promptly recall Steve Smith and pressing on the player's involvement in the World Cup. Since Australia's return from India, they have experimented with their starting lineup, leaving Clarke, the 2015 World Cup-winning skipper, bewildered.
Given that Cameron Green is not currently a member of Australia's World Cup squad, Clarke specifically referred to the decision to start with Cameron Green as a "mistake" and claimed that skipper Aaron Finch could have been opening the batting all along, with changes being made as little as possible so close to the competition.
“They’ve made a mistake in not picking Cameron Green. It’s as simple as that. My only concern is they’ve been giving Cameron Green every opportunity, I don’t know why they haven’t given Steve Smith that opportunity,” Clarke said on the Big Sports Breakfast.
“Steve Smith can open the batting in T20 cricket. He’s in the squad, he’s a big chance of playing in this World Cup so surely you need him batting, making runs (and) in form, at this stage Cameron Green’s not in the World Cup. That’s what has been a little strange,” he added.
Smith’s start to the home season with Australia was brilliant, as he notched up some good runs against Zimbabwe before scoring a ton against New Zealand. In the first game of the away T20 series, he boosted the innings by hitting 35 off 24 against India, but in his last three innings, he has failed to cross 20 runs even.
“Like, they took Steve Smith to Western Australia. Flew him to Perth to make him 12th man - that’s not right. And don’t tell me Steve Smith has to bat No.3 or No.4. If he opens the batting, he will be the leading run-scorer in the T20 World Cup. He’s still that good a player. As good as he is, I’d rather him walk out in the first game in the first World Cup game with some form, with some runs under his belt,” Clarke said.
Steve Smith can save you a game: Clarke
His exclusion from the first T20 match against the West Indies last week, followed by his absence from Australia's starting lineup against England in Perth, despite traveling to Western Australia, may not have helped fine-tune his rhythm. The 33-year-old Smith, who was primarily a traditional batter surrounded by powerful all-rounders, received harsh treatment, according to Clarke, who felt that the player still has a lot more to offer and was an important part of the team.
“My reason always for (including) someone like a Steve Smith in your team is because not all conditions are the same, if we lose two for not many, you’ve got one of the world’s best batsmen coming in. Steve Smith can save you a game as well, he can find you a way of getting to 170 and have a total to defend rather than being bowled out for 100. I still think in T20 cricket you need one of those players in your top six batsmen,” Clarke added.
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