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Former Australia captain Greg Chappell isn't happy with team's selection strategy leading up to the Ashes clash against England. Notably, the five-match Ashes 2025-2026 series is slated to start from November 21. Writing in his column for ESPNcricinfo, Chappell questioned the potential plan to move key batsman Marnus Labuschagne up the order to open the innings alongside Usman Khawaja.
Greg Chappell not happy with Australia's Ashes selection
Chappell indicated that despite having a specialist opener, Jake Weatherald, included in the squad, the selectors seem to be leaning away from using him. He believes the primary intention behind shifting Labuschagne is to accommodate all-rounders Cameron Green and Beau Webster in the playing XI.
"Despite selecting a specialist opener, Jake Weatherald, in the squad, I believe the intention is to send Marnus Labuschagne out to open with Khawaja. This will allow Cameron Green and Beau Webster to play, giving the best balance of batting and bowling in the squad - especially as Green has hardly bowled a ball in anger since his recent back surgery," Chappell said, as quoted from his ESPNcricinfo column.
"Opening with Labuschagne is extremely risky. He should bat at three, as that is his specialist spot, where he has delivered prolifically. The fact that he is being considered as an opener suggests that the selectors do not have a specialist they trust, and that one or both of Green and Webster are well short of the bowling loads required to get through a Test match," he added.
He supported his argument by citing Ian Chappell and Ricky Ponting's pair example.
"Ian Chappell and Ricky Ponting were exceptional No. 3 batters for Australia in their time. That doesn't mean that they would have been as successful had they been press-ganged into opening. They were often batting early in the innings, but the mindset to walk out to open the innings is subtly different".
Labuschagne's form and risk of batting out of position
Greg Chappell went on to praise Marnus Labuschagne's recent resurgence, noting that he has reinvented himself this summer with a return to the intent that he showed early in his Test career.
"Marnus has reinvented himself this summer with a return to the intent that he showed early in his Test career. For the past few seasons he has looked like someone who was batting to not get out. This risk-averse attitude to batting actually increases the risk of getting out. In this state of mind, the feet do not move and the runs dry up. Even if one succeeds in not getting out, one doesn't make many runs because the number of deliveries that you can attack becomes limited. It would be a shame to risk short-circuiting his return to Test cricket by batting him out of position."
Chappell advocates for Mitchell Marsh at the top
Chappell made a strong case for Mitchell Marsh as a better opening option specifically for the Perth Test. He acknowledged that this would be a left-field choice but argued that Marsh possesses an advantage at the venue.
"Mitch (Mitchell) Marsh is the choice I would have preferred. It would have been a left-field choice, but this is a venue where he has an advantage over all other candidates. He grew up in Perth so the bounce would not worry him; he is one of the best players of pace in the country, and he could have bowled some meaningful overs to support the frontline quicks".
The former captain further warned of the dangerous instability that moving Labuschagne could cause. If Labuschagne opens, Chappell predicts that Cameron Green will be forced to bat at No. 3 again, a position for which he is fundamentally not suited.
"If they do go with Labuschagne at the top of the order, that will mean Green will be forced to bat at No. 3 again. It is a position for which he is not suited, so all of a sudden, the Australian batting order is dangerously unbalanced. In time, I expect Green to slot into the No. 4 position he is eminently more suited for. The other reason that I would not send him in early is that, if fit, he will be expected to bowl important overs, so he will need time to prepare to bat rather than put the pads straight on".
Chappell criticises Australia's conservative selection
Chappell concluded by fiercely criticizing the selectors' conservative mindset, stating they have effectively boxed themselves into a corner.
"The selectors have boxed themselves into a corner. Over the past year or so they have shied away from bold calls, leaving themselves no real option now but the conservative line. They were risk-averse in picking the team. They missed an opportunity to lay down the gauntlet at one of the world's unique venues. And they are actually taking a huge risk by playing batters out of position," Chappell concluded.
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