Matt Renshaw’s commitment to protecting his stumps is central to his batting approach and he is firm on adhering to it, despite his second-innings lbw dismissal in Dhaka
Daniel Brettig and Adam Collins02-Sep-2017Johnny Cash wrote . For Toto, it was . When it comes to Matt Renshaw, his tune could easily be called .It wasn’t simply a random happening when Renshaw was beaten 15 times in 137 balls during the second innings on debut against South Africa last year in Adelaide, nor when he refused to allow his bat to follow R Ashwin’s big turning offbreaks during an Indian tour performance that was better than his figures suggested.Keep Wade for Chittagong – Healy
Dropping Matthew Wade for a part-timer in Peter Handscomb would be detrimental to Australia’s chances of winning the second Test against Bangladesh in Chittagong, former Australia gloveman Ian Healy has said.
“That’s not going to help anyone,” Healy told Channel Nine on Saturday. “You risk compromising Handscomb’s batting, and I don’t imagine the bowlers would be filled with confidence knowing there’s a part-timer at the other end with the gloves on.
“I’m not looking too much at the 30 byes. It was a really difficult pitch to keep on: there were some balls coming through shin high, and others disappearing over the batsman’s shoulder. I can’t ever remember in my career having to deal with that. You always expected plenty of turn in places like India or Pakistan, but the inconsistent bounce is a nightmare for a keeper.
“It’s been tough for Wade this year given the pitches they’ve played on in India and now here in Bangladesh, and it might be even tougher for him in the second Test if they play three spinners.”
Renshaw’s commitment to playing the line of the ball and protecting his stumps is central to his batting approach and a reason why his second-innings lbw dismissal in Dhaka, beaten when the ball did not turn, was a source of particular disappointment. He is, however, not planning on changing the methods that have got him this far. To do so by following the darting ball was always a pitfall that Renshaw’s predecessor Chris Rogers sought to avoid, and was also a habit that crept damagingly into the game of Mark Taylor during his infamous run of outs two decades ago.”Generally the pitch in Dhaka wasn’t really turning as much as the Indian pitch,” Renshaw said in Chittagong. “Some were turning, which made it quite difficult to work out which one was turning and which one was not. You’ve just got to try and play for the one that doesn’t miss you on the inside and if it spins past you, it spins past you. It’s probably one of the toughest spinning wickets I’ve had because it’s not spun for a majority of time, just the occasional one that spun quite a lot.”I’ve developed quite a bit over the last six months and I think it worked quite well for me in India: just trying to play the ball on its merits. If I get a bad ball, try and hit it for four but if it’s on the stumps, you’ve got to try and not get out because it’s a matter of survival out there and just trying to bat for as long as I can.”We all know what we need to do and sometimes you just put the foot in the wrong place and miss the ball. You’ve just got to try and prepare in the nets and not make those mistakes because it’s a costly mistake, getting out in the subcontinent, especially with a new batsman coming in when you’re set.”While David Warner set a powerful example for the Australians in the second innings after Renshaw’s dismissal, staying light on his feet to either spring forward or snap back, the height differential of the two left-handers offers an insight into how every batsman must find their own way forward.Matt Renshaw said his height gives him the reach advantage, whereas David Warner’s short frame makes him lighter on his feet•Cricket Australia/Getty Images”You hear him talking in the media and he talked a lot about it in the change-rooms as well – just being light on his feet,” Renshaw said. “You could see the difference from his first innings to the second innings, how light on his feet and how easy it was for him to move out to the ball and then back as far back as possible. You hear the greats talk about batting in the subcontinent and it’s trying to get to the ball and smother it or get right back and play it as late as you can.”[Warner has] probably got the lighter-on-his-feet advantage but I’ve got the reach advantage. I can reach quite far towards where the ball’s pitching. He might run down at one whereas I can just defend. It’s about working what’s best for us but also working at it as a team and trying to be the best team we can be.”The contrast, of course, is likely to serve the Australian openers well back home during the Ashes in November, when the lengths of the England pacemen will need to be adjusted for every delivery. “You see it a lot with right-handers and left-handers, how tough it is for bowlers to adjust their line,” Renshaw said. “I’m not a bowler myself but I know that it’s probably tougher to find your length especially against someone who’s as tall as me and as short as Davey.”For now, however, the Australians need to find a way to prevail in the second Test and square a series that always loomed as dangerous in the aftermath of the pay war. In addition to wily spin bowlers and tinder dry pitches, the challenges have included enervating heat and humidity besides, for Renshaw, a second bout of stomach troubles in as many Asian tours.”It’s pretty disappointing to lose any Test match whether it be at home or away from home but I think the mood’s pretty good,” Renshaw insisted. “We know what we’ve done wrong in the first Test, so we’re just looking forward to righting those wrongs in the second Test and hopefully win and tie the Test series.”I always try and go into any game of cricket just with an open mind and try to enjoy the challenge. You have the challenge of facing a quick bowler on a seamer and you have the challenge of facing the best Test allrounder in the world over here. I think it’s just about finding that challenge and enjoying it because I find that when I’m enjoying my cricket, that’s when I’m playing my best.””I think the culture isn’t too bad at the moment. We’re all new to the team – Ash [Agar] played four years ago and came back and it’s good to see that he’s come back so well in that first Test. I think we’re all just trying to learn. We’re all quite young and we’ve all got a lot of cricket ahead of us, so we just want to try and learn off the senior players and try and help build a bit of our own culture.”A culture that includes playing the line.