The PlanetCricket View: Is too much pressure placed on a cricketer?s Test debut?

[PlanetCricket]

Article by Spickery -



For professional cricketers there is nothing more exciting and memorable than walking onto a ground for their Test debut, representing their nation. The build-up starts when they are first notified of their selection by a selector or the coach informing them they will be playing their first Test match for their country. Training and match preparation then follows, with the Test debutant eager to train hard and make a good impression. The attention the Test debutant receives from the media can also not be forgotten. Articles are published in the paper and on the internet about him, cricket ‘experts’ are asked about their opinion on the player and how they think he will go and journalists interview him before his big match. All of this is normal and expected and doesn’t look like changing anytime soon.

Test cricket is a difficult and funny game. A Test cricketer can be in excellent form with the bat or ball in one game and then be down in the doldrums the next. Expecting a Test cricketer to come out and preform straight away can be a tough ask. This is made even more challenging because they have to be in top physical and mental form for normally around five days, which is unheard of in other sports.



With all of this information in mind, are we taking too much of a Test cricketer on debut? Recent examples of Australian cricketers struggling on Test debutant include Matthew Wade, Rob Quiney and George Bailey. Normally, in Australia if a cricketer fails in their Test debut they are allowed one more match before they risked being dropped. With Test cricket being such a challenging game there is an argument there is too much expectation placed on a cricketer who is making his Test debut



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[NoLeName]

I think dropping Bailey was very harsh. People don't seem to quite understand how challenging test cricket is - you can't be expected to just jump in and wack a century. Bailey played five games, and in that time he scored a test fifty and broke a world record. He averaged 26, which I would suggest isn't too bad for your first series. He's shown he can perform on the international arena in ODIs. And who do you drop him for, a man in bad form who was only selected because of a big innings against South Africa two years ago? In my opinion Bailey deserved at least the SA series to prove himself.

 

[aussie1st]

Wade had a solid run, his keeping was too much of a liability to carry on. Bailey was a tricky one, but if you told me we would replace him with Marsh and Doolan then I would have said keep him for one more series.