No need to panic, loss to Sri Lanka in Test matches was a minor blip, says Rod Marsh

Rod Marsh, the Australian chief selector has said that the recent humiliating whitewash in the Test series which the Australian team suffered at the hands of Sri Lanka is nothing but a minor 'blip'. Marsh also maintained that there is no need to hit panic buttons regarding the team's trip to India next year.

While this statement appears to call for calm, the numbers speak an entirely different story. Australia have lost 9 consecutive matches in Asia, and in the process have managed to win only a solitary match in 18 attempts since 2008.

Also, Pat Howard, the performance manager of the team has gone on record stating that the selection procedure has to see a radical shift and that a 'horses-for-courses mentality' will have to be embraced. Howard also said that conditions will have to be respected and that it was very important to pick players on their past performances.

Marsh was more sceptical towards this approach and believed that the players will have to be flexible in different conditions.

“Good players are good players,” he said. “That’s what we’ve got to remember. They’re usually good players because they can adapt to conditions. We had a bit of a blip here. But we’re not going to panic. There’s no way. We can’t afford to panic because it’s just ridiculous if we do.”

“The horses-for- courses business, first of all, you’ve got to know the course and we don’t know the course yet, and the onus lies with the players who will have to adapt. Traditionally, pitches in India have been very good to bat on in the first innings”, Marsh added.

Australia bounced back with some aplomb in the 5-match ODI series where they brushed aside Sri Lanka 4-1, and there were many theories afloat regarding this sudden transformation in the same conditions, against the same opposition.

Marsh was quick to put all speculations to rest when he said that both the formats should be isolated from each other and that there is a whole lot of difference between white ball and red ball cricket.

"It is a lot different playing with a white ball and with the field back than when you've got people standing on the pitch, it is a different game," Marsh further said.