BEHIND THE STUMPS : Australian wicketkeeper after Haddin

During the days of Ian Healy (90s) and Adam Gilchrist (21st century), Australia never had to look beyond the two for second choices for wicket keeping. Gilchrist had to play the waiting game as a fielder before Healy was dropped on account of dipping form and age.

Brad Haddin

When Gilchrist took over, his fitness levels were such that he rarely had to stay out due to injuries. The only instances when he didn’t play was when he opted out of certain tournaments that were packed like sardines into the cricketing calendar. In such times, the question of replacement was never a tough one as it is now. Brad Haddin was being groomed from 2001 itself and he was the automatic choice. Now Haddin has taken over from Gilchrist and his fitness level is no match for that of Gilly as his recent spate of injuries shows. This has thrown open the doors for four other wicketkeepers to develop themselves as backup for Haddin. A look at the backups:

Luke Ronchi : This Western Australian stumper came into light during the IPL 2008 when he played for the Mumbai Indians without creating much impact. Soon after the IPL, Australia’s tour of West Indies followed and after keeping in the three Tests, Haddin suffered his first injury in the post-Gilly era. Ronchi was called up for the ODIs and was relatively behind the scenes in the first four ODIs. In the fifth, he shot into the record books when he opened the innings and scored a half century of just 21 balls, the fastest by any Australian then–a record which was broken minutes later by David Hussey, who consumed just 19 deliveries for his fifty. That was Ronchi’s way of saying ‘I have arrived’. But his joys were shortlived as he had a horrid time for Western Australia in the domestic Test, OD and T20 competitions. Following this, he was sacked from WA at the end of the Shield season in 2009. Now he has regained his place in the WA team and has started well with a century against New South Wales in the ongoing Sheffield Shield.

Tim Paine : Paine made his way into the Australian setup after an impressive showing for the Australia A side that toured Pakistan in July this year. Brad Haddin’s injury in the Ashes ruled him out of the Natwest one-day series against England and Paine has only been too happy to grab his chance. He impressed further in the Champions Trophy and then in the first two ODIs against India before injuring his finger and flying back to Hobart.

Graham Manou : The captain and wicketkeeper of South Australia, Manou was named as Haddin’s understudy for the Ashes tests and got his chance in the third Test. Now Paine’s exit from the India tour has won Manou a place in the ODI setup and he is tagging along helping the Aussie bowlers to add some wickets to their names. South Australia has not produced much prolific cricketers and those handed an opportunity in the past–Darren Lehmann, Jason Gillespie, Shaun Tait and Callum Ferguson–have not disappointed so far. It’s only a question of being in the pecking order and Manou is very much there.

Chris Hartley : Hartley got a call-up to the Australian side when it was playing a tour game against Northamptonshire during the Ashes. The Queensland keeper came in as cover for Manou. A useful opening batsman, Hartley has to make his way through the trio of Manou-Paine-Haddin to get a look-in in the national side. If Luke Ronchi comes back into reckoning, it could cause further problems for Hartley but like other Australian domestic players, he is ready to bide his time, playing the waiting game.

Matthew Wade : Following Adam Crosthwaite’s movement to New South Wales, Wade got his contract for Victoria. His dream is to be Haddin’s backup and is quite happy to fight to overcome the stumbling blocks in the form of Paine and Manou. Never before in the last two decades has Australia’s bench strength been tested so much. Gilchrist amazed everyone with not only his batting but also his fitness required for the most physically challenging job in cricket. The Paines, Manous and the Wades would do well to take cues from their illustrious predecessor on how to hang on to the job of Australian stumper without giving it up.