Australia’s Test team opening position has turned into something like a lottery — whoever’s name comes up gets a shot at opening the innings for the Baggy Greens. Since David Warner retired from international Test cricket in January last year, Australia has tried four different openers across 11 Tests, apart from Usman Khawaja.
Yet, none of those four might feature in the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Instead, a new face could open in the one-off Test against South Africa starting June 11 at Lord’s, making him Australia’s fifth Test opener in just 12 matches since Warner’s departure.
Interestingly, the last two openers didn’t fare too poorly. Sam Whiteman impressed with his aggressive approach against Jasprit Bumrah in the final two Tests versus India. Meanwhile, Travis Head, who opened during the away series in Sri Lanka, had been in Australia’s plans since 2023 and justified the selectors’ faith with solid performances.
However, neither Head nor Whiteman may be seen opening in the WTC final. Selectors’ comments, especially those from George Bailey, suggest a different approach. After announcing the squad for the final, Bailey said having a specialist opener is not a strict requirement: “I believe Josh (Josh Inglis) can do it, just like I’ve said about Marnus. It’s a position where many players can adapt, even if traditionally it’s seen as a specialist role.”
Bailey’s comments indicate that both Marnus Labuschagne and Josh Inglis are under consideration to open the innings. However, Labuschagne’s current form is concerning — he averages only 28.33 in this test cycle and has opened just once since 2016.
Since Warner’s retirement in 2024, Australia has experimented outside its pool of red-ball specialist openers, with mixed results. Steven Smith was tried but didn’t find much success. Nathan McSweeney was brought in during the India series but struggled, particularly against Bumrah in the first three Tests.
Most recently, Sam Whiteman and Travis Head opened for Australia and showed the most promise. Yet, with uncertainty still lingering, it remains to be seen who will ultimately take the crease at the top in the final.
