Straight is the rule at Gabba
MATTHEW Hayden has reissued a firm warning to Marcus Harris that he must be prepared to “eat his meat and potatoes” before he chases a flash dessert at the Gabba.
The Brisbane batting great gave the same caution to Harris when he last played at the ground two summers ago, but the left-hander failed to heed it – slashing wildly square of the wicket to butcher a golden chance with a soft dismissal against Sri Lanka.
Those loose shots have so far defined Harris’ nine Tests, but a shoulder injury to Will Pucovski has opened the door for him for the first time since being dropped at the end of the 2019 Ashes.
Pucovski is a massive loss for Australia after he showed all the hallmarks of a career Test opener in Sydney.
Hayden says for Harris to finally make his mark, in a door-die series decider, he must learn from his mistakes and obey the laws of the Gabba, as passed down to him by Test great Bill Brown: play straight down the ground and resist the temptation to play through cover, point and gully as if his life depends on it.
“The challenge at the Gabba is you start seeing the ball well. It’s a big, open ground, and it’s a wicket that always lulls you into a false sense of security,” said Hayden, who will join Channel 7’s commentary team at the Gabba.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been out disappointed because I’ve even just thought about playing square of the wicket.
“You walk and call yourself an idiot because the moment you start looking straight, you bat longer, you bat time
“Someone like Marcus who is a very good square-of-thewicket player, is always tempted to be in that situation where you start playing those shots too early and when you do that you’re at the risk of first, second, third slip, gully etc.
“It’s not just a fault of young Harris, it’s a fault of everyone who plays at the Gabba and you have to follow certain rules of play in these conditions.
“Billy Brown told me this and I assume someone else told Billy. Browny was always so adamant – playing down the ground is the key to batting at the Gabba.”
Pucovski tried to muscle his way through a fitness test but couldn’t even manage to get out into the nets, after damaging his shoulder at the SCG.
Captain Tim Paine admits Australian medical staff aren’t sure what shape Pucovski’s recovery will take, but there is hope he can avoid surgery.
It’s the latest chapter in Pucovski’s extraordinary run of misfortune that has seen him play his one and only Test last week.
“He’ll have a bit of work to do with our medicos to see where he goes from here. There will be some discussions around Will’s recovery,” Paine said.