The Cairns Post

Attack under pump

Dizzy: Expect fringe call up

- Ed Bourke

Former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie says there is a chance fringe quicks Scott Boland and Michael Neser will play together in the Ashes.

A jam-packed schedule of six Tests in seven weeks would stretch the Australian bowling attack and lead to selection problems between matches, Gillespie said.

The SA Redbacks and Adelaide Strikers coach said the philosophy of national selectors would quickly become apparent when the Australian­s enter the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston off just a three-day break following the World Test Championsh­ip final.

“There’s always a chance (Boland and Neser both play), and the reason I say that is the Tests are in very quick succession,” Gillespie said.

“The challenge for both sides will be managing those short breaks – can a quick get through five Tests in six weeks?

“It’s got to be our shortest Ashes tour in history … in terms of time.”

Gillespie said it would be difficult for selectors to ignore Neser, given his all-round form in county cricket, with the Queensland­er claiming 19 wickets at 25.63 and 311 runs at 51.83 in five games for second division side Glamorgan.

“I don’t know which way they’ll go – (Neser or Boland) is going to be the decision, because they’ll definitely play Starc and Cummins, and they’ll definitely play Lyon and Green,” Gillespie said.

“That’s going to be a real tricky one. I think there’ll be a lot of temptation to play Michael Neser because he’s been playing county cricket and he’s performing really well.

“It’ll just come down to selection philosophy, really – do you go the incumbent, or do you strike while the iron is hot and go for someone that’s actually been in English conditions and performing strongly?”

Gillespie said it would be a “nightmare” to be in charge of internatio­nal cricket scheduling at present, pointing back to the wide-open schedule of the 1993 Ashes tour to England.

“I remember on that tour, Matthew Hayden scored 1000 first-class runs, but he didn’t play a single Test match – it suggests they obviously played a lot of county cricket in between the games,” he said.

“Everyone agrees that in an ideal world you’d have practice matches and tour matches, but you look at the schedules these days – 30 years ago there were no T20 tournament­s, there was two formats of the game and probably not as many countries regularly playing.

“The year isn’t getting longer – there’s so much more cricket, so it’s a tricky one.”

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