It was the selection decision about which everyone who is anyone in Australian cricket had expressed an opinion. When David Warner announced his intention to retire from Test cricket at the end of the series against Pakistan in Sydney last year, he gave selector George Bailey plenty of time to consider how best to replace a transformative figure – and plenty of time for the talking heads to have their say.
Ricky Ponting put forward the case of Cameron Bancroft, the form opener in the Sheffield Shield. Matthew Hayden liked the versatile Matt Renshaw. Warner himself suggested Marcus Harris, a some-time colleague internationally who has carried the drinks as the reserve opener for most of the last two years.
