MELBOURNE: Austr­alia’s hopes of resolving their batting problems in time for the Test series against Pakistan have proved forlorn, with a slew of candidates failing to stake their claim since the Ashes.

Selectors name the Test squad on Thursday but will have to rely on their gut rather than hard numbers when picking an opening partner for David Warner and filling a middle order vacancy following the drawn series in England.

The Australia ‘A’ tour game against Pakistan in Perth was to have offered an unofficial audition but all of the hopefuls fluffed their lines on Tuesday barring Cameron Bancroft, who scored 49 as the hosts were bowled out for a paltry 122 in the first innings.

Opener Bancroft, who was dropped mid-series in England after a string of failures, was only picked in the ‘A’ team after Nic Maddinson pulled out on mental health grounds and felt his chances of a recall were dim.

“Probably highly unlikely, I would have thought,” the 26-year-old told reporters after stumps on Tuesday.

Incumbent opener Marcus Harris, who averaged 9.66 against Joe Root’s England in three Tests during the Ashes, failed to cement his place with a score of 16 and 20. His top order rival Usman Khawaja poked around for six runs from 30 balls before being caught behind, but scored an unbeaten 37 in the second innings on Wednesday.

Opener Joe Burns, renowned for missing out on a place in the Ashes squad despite scoring 180 in the previous Test against Sri Lanka in February, blew his chance to make an impression when he was bowled for a golden duck by Imran Khan in the first dig and then was caught behind by substitute wicket-keeper Abid Ali off Shaheen Shah Afridi for 11 a day later.

Middle-order hopeful Travis Head, also dropped during the Ashes, did little for his hopes of a recall with a brace of 13s, while much-hyped youngster Will Pucovski was out for five following his twin failures for Victoria in the Sheffield Shield. The first Test starts in Brisbane on Nov 21.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2019