Former Australian all-rounder Shane Lee believes fans have a right to feel short-changed by the decision to field a second string side for the One-Day International series clinched by Pakistan in Perth on Sunday.
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As Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley defended the decision to rest several Test players from the decider in Western Australia, declaring one-day cricket remained a priority, Lee said he was “torn” by what unfolded at Optus Stadium.
The reigning ODI World Champions were blitzed by Pakistan in the final two games in Adelaide and Perth, with the tourists winning their first series in Australia since 2002. Only Glenn Maxwell and Adam Zampa featured from the side which were World Champions in 2023.
Lee, who played 45 One-Day Internationals for Australia and was a member of World Cup squads in 1996 and 1999, said he understood the calendar was crowded and that players needed time for rest, but that it was disappointing not to field a full-strength side.
“I am really torn … because it is the game that gave me the opportunity (to play for Australia). It is the thing that bought my house, so I am pretty proud of playing for Australia in that format,” Lee told Fox Cricket’s podcast The Follow On.
“But in saying that, these players now, the schedule is so busy and there are so many games, you need to manage how many games you can play so that they don’t burn themselves out. They need to be right for the big matches.
“But when I see a real second string team — and that is taking nothing away from the players playing in these matches — but it is not the number one side and I think as a spectator going along, you would feel slightly disappointed. If you pay money for a ticket, you want to see the best players play and I don’t think we saw that in recent games.”
Hockley defended a decision which saw players including Pat Cummins, who was attending a concert in Sydney as the decider was being played in Perth, miss the match.
He cited the importance of ensuring senior Australians were fresh enough to fire throughout the entirety of the Border Gavaskar Trophy beginning in Perth next Thursday.
“The reality of the Australian set-up is we’re fortunate to have probably more all-format players than any other country. We have been criticised in the past for not giving new players an opportunity to come in,” Hockley said.
“I think there was a plan in place, and that plan was to make sure our all-format players were in peak condition for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar series. Last time India were here, that series went down to the last session of the last Test match.”
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Australia will play the first of three T20 matches against Pakistan in a series beginning in Brisbane on Thursday and finishing in Hobart on Monday, a day where the launch of the Border Gavaskar Trophy featuring Test stars will be held in Perth.
India is due to tour Australia next year for a series of ODI and T20 matches ahead the Ashes series against England and Hockley said CA was reviewing the schedule in the hope of fielding the strongest possible team for each encounter.
“We’ll get right into the detail to make sure the travel schedule (for 2025-26) is optimised so we can continue to put our best possible XI on the field,” Hockley said.
“We have a scheduling working group, we have representatives from high performance, we have representatives from our broadcast team … the teams that work with the venues.
“Our primary reason why the travel schedule is tough is because we want as many fans around the country to see international cricket, so that won’t change.”
Lee will be in Perth with his band Six & Out, which also features his younger brother Brett Lee, former Test cricketer Gavin Robertson and ex-New South Wales players Richard Chee Quee and Brad McNamara, for a gig at the Camfield Hotel on November 22.
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