Matt Renshaw reverse sweeps in Pune in Australia’s 2017 victory.Credit:AP
A drawn series in Sri Lanka on sharply spinning surfaces raised queries about Head in particular,while Warner was another who struggled to make a significant contribution in foreign conditions.
That means the selectors will be looking at other players to round out the batting options for the India tour,with Glenn Maxwell chosen as a reserve member of the squad in Sri Lanka when Head’s fitness was in doubt.
Marcus Harris,30,who played some part in the Ashes last summer and then toured Pakistan but not Sri Lanka,has kept himself in the selectors’ thoughts with consistent runs at state and county levels.
The previous tour to India five years ago seems an age away,but its fluctuating conditions and fortunes were experienced not only by Maxwell but also Renshaw (then Warner’s opening partner) and Handscomb,before the duo fell out of favour.
As Victorian captain,31-year-old Handscomb has since carved out a spot at the top of the Sheffield Shield aggregates,and last week sculpted a monumental,unbeaten 281 against Western Australia on an admittedly placid Junction Oval surface.
Renshaw,meanwhile,has re-staked his claim for consideration at the top of the order,fashioning his own double century against New South Wales at Drummoyne with the incumbent Test openerUsman Khawaja happy to bat No. 4 as Queensland captain. Still only 26,he has already seen plenty of undulations in his career.