Test-certainty Handscomb goes into bat for close mate Wade

PETER Handscomb feels for under-pressure Test wicketkeeper Matthew Wade as he struggles to find form with the Ashes looming.

The former state teammates will face off in the Sheffield Shield when Victoria hosts Tasmania from Monday at the MCG.

For Handscomb, assured of selection after a glowing 12 months, it will be a chance to tune up for the Ashes.

For Wade, it might well be the last chance to salvage his Test career. The Tasmanian gloveman is battling with NSW’s Peter Nevill, South Australia’s Alex Carey and Western Australia’s Cameron Bancroft to play in the first Test, starting on November 23 in Brisbane. Wade has averaged just 20 with the bat since his Test recall last summer and has failed to impress in two rounds of Shield cricket.

But close mate Handscomb believes the 29-year-old is a better batsman than his recent performances suggest.

“I am a bit surprised with Matty because I know how well he can bat,” the Victorian skipper said.

“Obviously, he’s under the microscope a little bit, so every little thing he seems to do wrong gets intensified ... which is a bit of a shame, because he does do so much right as well.

“I’ve been able to see, for the last year, all the things that he has been doing right.

“Hopefully, for his sake, he can focus on that a little bit and try to get away from the negatives.”

Australia’s No. 6 spot is another that has effectively come down to a shootout between a dozen candidates in the three Shield rounds preceding the Ashes.

Jake Lehmann has been talked up as a potential bolter but Handscomb says players should be judged on their career records.

“Jake’s obviously a very, very good player,” he said.

“He went out there and basically made two hundreds, so that’s a positive sign.

“But there are guys that have been scoring runs for three or four years.

“Ultimately, you want someone that’s going consistently and, if they’re only going to be judged on these three games, as opposed to what they’ve done throughout their career, that can be a bit tough.”