Melboure, Jan 31 (IANS) Australia’s National Selection Panel (NSP) chairman John Inverarity inists that ODI wicketkeeper Brad Haddin has been rested but the Test vice captain feels he has been dropped.
Haddin believes he may never regain his spot after Victoria’s Matthew Wade was chosen for Australia’s first three ODIs in the tri-series over the next fortnight, beginning Sunday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
“I think any time you’re out of the Australian cricket team I think you’re dropped,” Haddin told Sky Sports Radio.
“You give another guy an opportunity to take your spot and you’ve got to look if they do well, you could find it hard to get back in the team. But that’s the way it is and I’ve just got to deal with that and make sure I’m ready to play.”
Inverarity, however, assured Haddin that he was still the Test wicketkeeper, although there were no guarantees the he would get back his side in the ODI squad.
“It’s very clear. Brad has had a rigorous keeper-batsman role through quite a few Tests and we are also trying to develop other cricketers. We’re trying to get a pool of fast bowlers, a pool of batsmen, a couple of wicket-keepers and some spinners,” Inverarity told News Limited newspapers.
“This was an ideal opportunity for Brad to have a spell for a while and for us to play Wade, who is a player of particular interest, and to trail him while Brad was having a spell. After three games we’d have a sense of whether we’ll keep going with Wade or back to Haddin. I had that conversation with Brad. `It’s good for you to have a spell.’ Chatting with Brad he couldn’t have been more relaxed about it. As far as the selectors are concerned he hasn’t been dropped from the Australian team and be forced to win his place back,” he said.
