{"id":685,"date":"2026-10-15T05:02:13","date_gmt":"2026-10-15T04:02:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/15\/cummins-mcdonald-say-matt-renshaw-back-to-opener-is-a-possibility\/"},"modified":"2026-10-15T05:02:13","modified_gmt":"2026-10-15T04:02:13","slug":"cummins-mcdonald-say-matt-renshaw-back-to-opener-is-a-possibility","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/15\/cummins-mcdonald-say-matt-renshaw-back-to-opener-is-a-possibility\/","title":{"rendered":"Cummins, McDonald say Matt Renshaw back to opener is a possibility"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last Updated on 10 minutes ago by Charbel Coorey<\/a><\/p>\n

Matt Renshaw\u2019s outstanding performance in the first Test against South Africa has given Australia<\/a> another headache. Batting at five, Renshaw made scores of 190 and 82<\/a>, setting up the match after Australia were under pressure.<\/p>\n

However, the top order still doesn\u2019t inspire much confidence, running the risk of Renshaw walking out in another precarious scenario at Gqeberha and beyond. Travis Head is averaging 16.2 in three Tests since the Ashes and isn\u2019t looking as comfortable as he often does at number five. Nic Maddinson fared much better in the second innings compared to the first, but his head falling over to the offside makes him susceptible to the inswinging delivery. Marnus Labuschagne made a further two starts in Durban, but he isn\u2019t able to carry on in recent times with five 30+ scores in four Tests this calendar year.<\/p>\n

Will Australia move Matt Renshaw to opener? Cummins, McDonald not set on batting order yet<\/strong><\/h2>\n

So is Renshaw the answer at the top? Pat Cummins says it would be a big call to move the left-hander away from the position he performed so well in, but believes the 30-year-old is capable of producing as opener too.<\/p>\n

\u201cI mean, it\u2019s got to be pretty compelling to move him from there,\u201d Cummins said, as quoted by foxsports.com.au<\/a><\/em>. \u201cBut we\u2019ve seen Travis Head down at number five as well do a job. We\u2019re always working about the six batters, or seven plus \u2018Kez\u2019 (Alex Carey) and how that is going to function as a whole.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still think he [Renshaw] can be a great opener, and now he\u2019s got another string for his bow that he\u2019s found this week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coach Andrew McDonald says Australia are flexible. He has the view that Australia can shift their batting order depending on the conditions and personnel available.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe view Nic Maddinson the same way that we do Matthew Renshaw \u2013 that they could bat one, two, three, four, five, potentially even six,\u201d said McDonald.<\/p>\n

\u201cI suppose the external view on that is that you need specific orders at certain times, and this person\u2019s an opener, this person\u2019s a middle-order player \u2013 I think we\u2019re more open-minded than that. But it doesn\u2019t make it right, either.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, Steve Waugh has guarded against further changes. The former captain says it\u2019s now time to stick with Renshaw at five after a superb performance.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t mess around with that now. He\u2019s been successful, and he\u2019s comfortable, so I\u2019d keep him [Renshaw] there for sure,\u201d Waugh said, as quoted by Sydney Morning Herald<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n

The second Test begins at St George\u2019s Park, Gqeberha on Sunday.<\/p>\n

The post Cummins, McDonald say Matt Renshaw back to opener is a possibility<\/a> appeared first on CricBlog<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Last Updated on 10 minutes ago by Charbel Coorey Matt Renshaw\u2019s outstanding performance in the first Test against South Africa has given Australia another headache. Batting at five, Renshaw made scores of 190 and 82, setting up the match after Australia were under pressure. However, the top order still doesn\u2019t inspire much confidence, running the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/685\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cricketkidunyya.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}