Australians looking to ‘go native’ on the county circuit

The frontal assault is over. Now the sleeper operation can begin. Australia captain Steve Smith admitted yesterday that “half-a-dozen” of his leading players were looking to embed themselves in county cricket next summer as part of their buildup to the 2019 Ashes.

England’s 3-2 victory in 2015 owed much to the unfamiliarity of the swinging ball, which hypnotised so many visiting batsmen into dozy drives outside off stump. But the Australians are already plotting to shore up this weakness.

Just look at the Marsh brothers, two of the worst offenders last time around, who have already secured contracts with the shires. Shaun will play for Glamorgan in 2018 and 2019, while Mitchell has signed for Surrey this summer.

“I think a few of the players are already going over and playing some county cricket,” Smith said, when asked if this might be a key facet of their next Ashes build-up. “I think there’s half-a-dozen as it is. Playing county cricket has been great for some people’s games, to help improve and develop in different conditions against different kinds of bowlers and balls.”

The prize on the table is a big one: Australia’s first series victory in the old country for 18 years. And the motivation within this team is unmistakable. Mitchell Marsh has already said that he will skip a much bigger potential payday in the Indian Premier League to work on his red-ball game in England.

The specialist fast bowlers are unlikely to darken our doors. They are too precious, too fragile, and too much in need of monitoring. But Nathan Lyon may well look to extend his association with Worcestershire. Last year, Lyon played four championship matches, but claimed only five victims – a statistic that could be seen as a reflection of English domestic pitches.

Smith has also turned out in Worcestershire kit, even if it was only Twenty20 pyjamas, and he wore them eight years ago when he was still a bits-and-pieces allrounder. He now has broader ambitions, judging by the way he began this Test by effectively hanging a “For Hire” sign around his own neck. “I’d love to play some county cricket at some point,” he said.

To complete Smith’s half-dozen, there is a group of batsmen whose places in the Test side are insecure. Cameron Bancroft and Peter Handscomb are thought to be on the market, plus opener Matt Renshaw, jettisoned just before Brisbane.