Twenty20 may be cause of Test depth drain

Nov 18, 2017 - 4:38 AM The rise of Twenty20 cricket may be to blame for Australia's lack of Test batting depth, national chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns says.

Hohns bemoaned the lack of batting contenders after granting 34-year-old Shaun Marsh his eighth recall ahead of next week's first Ashes Test in Brisbane.

Hohns admitted there were a "lot of underperformers" with the bat after selectors challenged players to step up in the Sheffield Shield's first three rounds with Test spots up for grabs.

Only Western Australia's run machine Cameron Bancroft answered the call, thrashing an unbeaten double century against South Australia in Perth to earn a Test debut replacing opener Matthew Renshaw.

Asked why Australia lacked Test batting depth, Hohns said: "Whether it is the influence of the short form (Twenty20) I am not sure, but there is a lot played.

"We just need players who can get in there and bat for periods of time, accumulate a lot of runs.

"If we make enough runs, we are very confident our bowlers will do the job."

Marsh has made 236 Shield runs at 39.33 this summer after notching 412 at 82 in the recent domestic one-day tournament.

Incumbent all-rounders Glenn Maxwell (200 Shield runs at 40) and Hilton Cartwright (152 runs at 25.33) were the main No.6 contenders overlooked when the 13-strong squad was named on Friday for the first two Ashes Tests.

The Ashes start at the Gabba on Thursday.

"We really didn't have anybody jumping out at us to demand selection, except for Cameron Bancroft who put a case forward that was irresistible," Hohns said.

"That's what we're asking our players to do now, not mediocre performances - we want to raise the bar."

Source: AAP