How the changing nature of Test cricket has left Lyon in a spin

3 months ago 8

Stuart MacGill is adamant that Nathan Lyon is the greatest finger spinner in the history of cricket.

“I’ve watched him bowl and you can hear the ball fizz through the air. The guy is a freak,” MacGill says.

But ahead of next week’s second Ashes Test in Brisbane, MacGill – the only other living Australian spinner with more than 100 Test wickets – doesn’t believe Lyon should be in the XI.

“I think it’s unusual for a spin bowler to say don’t pick a spin bowler,” says MacGill, who is now coaching some of Sydney’s best young tweakers. “But I really like Travis Head’s bowling. I saw him at the cricket academy in 2010 and thought ‘yep, he can bowl’.

“In a pink-ball Test at the Gabba, I don’t think we need a specialist spin bowler. What’s the point in taking a guy into a team if he’s gonna bowl two overs?”

These are strange times for spin bowling in Australia. The mix of a pink ball, a Gabba surface historically friendly to seam bowling, and England’s unshakeable Bazball blueprint leaves Lyon’s spot in the XI up for discussion – even after an eight-wicket win inside two days.

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon during the first Test in Perth.

Coach Andrew McDonald’s non-committal response when asked about Lyon’s place in the side this week has fuelled speculation that Australia could opt for four quicks, or three plus all-rounder Beau Webster batting at No.8 – a month after Pat Cummins told this masthead such a move would be highly unlikely this summer.

Lyon, with 140 matches in the baggy green, has not been dropped for a home Test since his debut in 2011 against Sri Lanka. In July, he was omitted for the third Test against the West Indies in Kingston – the first time since the 2013 Ashes he had been left out of an Australian XI when fit.

He carried the drinks that week in Jamaica during a pink ball game, bowled two overs in Perth last week as England were skittled twice, and might be surplus to requirements in Brisbane.

What does that say about the future of spin bowling in Australia? And what does it say that Joe Root’s part-time off-spin is all England think they need?

Joe Root took 0-12 from one over in the first Test in Perth.

“Joe Root as your national team spin bowler would make anyone who cares about cricket cry. It’s so totally embarrassing,” MacGill says. “How haven’t they cultivated other spinners?

“However, I don’t think we’ve done a good enough job developing our own spin bowlers.”

Shane Warne was spin bowling’s most powerful advocate, always spruiking the value of having a slow bowler in an XI. His presence is missed by tweakers everywhere.

“Shane Warne would be turning in his grave,” says ex-Australian leg-spinner Kerry O’Keeffe. “He’d just be teeing off, wouldn’t he?

Former Australian cricketer Stuart MacGill.

“Warnie contends – and it’s fair – that if it seams, it spins. It sounds like a cliché, but when it seams, matches end early.

“Is it now just marking time on Australian pitches and waiting for the trips to the subcontinent? That can disillusion young spinners on the way up that they’re only going to play in certain parts of the world.”

Last summer, Lyon bowled 122.4 overs – the fewest he has sent down in a home campaign in his career.

There is every chance Lyon plays a pivotal role in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney. But if Australia’s greatest off-spinner isn’t even guaranteed a game – or bowling fewer overs – what does that mean for a craft already under siege as Australian pitches offer more for the quicks?

Lyon spoke about the issue in August.

“I know how important spin bowling is, but there is a degree of me that’s concerned about spin bowling around the world, not just Australia, with the wickets we’re playing on,” Lyon said.

“If you look at spin bowling and your younger spin bowlers around the country, they’re not getting the overs or the opportunities to bowl on day-three, day-four wickets, or spinning wickets, or even green seamers because the fast bowlers are dominating.”

O’Keeffe understands where Lyon is coming from.

“He was such a big part of home campaigns and now every pitch they play on affords sideways movement for the quicker bowlers and it lasts most of the match,” O’Keeffe says. “Nine wickets for Lyon last summer in a winning series against India is bittersweet.”

Former Test spinner Stephen O’Keefe, who took 301 first-class wickets at 24.66, remains bullish about Australia’s depth but concedes Lyon’s situation could disillusion some.

“Domestically, I think we’re in the strongest position we’ve been in a long time in terms of depth,” O’Keefe says. “Mitch Swepson, Tanveer Sangha, Corey Rocchiccioli, Todd Murphy, Ben Manenti and Matt Kuhnemann are there, and I think all of them have the potential to play for Australia. The hard part is when they look up and don’t see a spinner playing.

“I’m picking a spinner every day of the week, even in this pink ball game.

Steve O’Keefe celebrates one of his 12 wickets during the 2017 Test in Pune.

“If Nathan doesn’t play at the Gabba and bowls two overs in Perth, I think is really worrisome for domestic spinners. Five Tests, and you don’t need a spinner for two? That would be so disappointing.

“Maybe do what Beau Webster did. Stop bowling offies and take up medium pace. That might be the shortest path into the Australian team because that seems more effective. In Australia, it is quite tough, so we need to judge our spinners a little differently.”

It is expected England will only double down with the bat in Brisbane. Even at 2-0 down, Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum won’t deviate from their aggressive method.

Lyon loves bowling on day-five pitches, but unless Australia’s batters pile on runs, that scenario may not materialise this series.

“I think Bazball, if anything, increase his chances of playing,” O’Keefe says. “They may go hard at him, but in Australia he’s one of the hardest spinners to attack on bigger grounds. I’m backing him as a weapon. He’s just as effective to break a partnership or knock over one of their top order batters as much as Scotty Boland is.”

Both Kerry O’Keeffe and MacGill have an eye on the future. They are excited by young Sydney leg-spinner Tom Brooks, who took 6-44 for NSW’s second XI this week against Tasmania and bowls “big ripping leg breaks”.

But Lyon’s predicament could have a ripple effect in the years to come.

“Tom has got a leg break that goes halfway across the pitch and that always excites me,” O’Keeffe says. “But what’s his path? He’s seeing what’s happening to a bloke with 562 Test wickets. He must think, ‘jeez, is this what I’m aspiring to be?’”

Lyon intends to keep going beyond this summer, with a 2027 tour of India and another Ashes series a major lure. He managed to play 100 Tests in a row, but if he were starting out now, there’s a compelling argument that such a streak would not be possible.

“It’d be really interesting to know what Nathan is thinking and what his plans are for the future,” MacGill says. “I’m mindful of the fact that Shane’s Australian record [of 708 Test wickets] is around the corner.”