Langer: Aussie selectors must back kids in Sri Lanka squad - The West Australian

Selectors, like players, are judged purely on performance. Win and they are doing a good job, lose and they are not. This simple fact makes selecting a thankless task. It is easy to be critical, but rarely does a selector get a pat on the back. Beau Webster’s inclusion in the last Test will now be ruled as a touch of genius, and so it should. The Tasmanian all-rounder was brilliant in all aspects of the game. Aside from Scott Boland’s heroics, Webster was man of the match in one of the most intense Test matches we have seen in years. On the other hand, you had the much-loved Mitch Marsh, who was dropped. This would have been hard for selectors because you can be sure his teammates would have been pleading to give him another go. Loyalty within the ranks is important for team unity, but the selectors made the hard call and were justified by their decision. Nathan McSweeney was placed in a tough predicament. Opening the batting when you have never done it before is incredibly tough. Add Jasprit Bumrah to that equation and the odds were stacked heavily against him. Success would have been golden. As it turns out, the gold will feel like sand for McSweeney and the selectors, but I like the fact they backed the young player who was making the most runs at the time. This formula of rewarding performance has served Australian cricket well for decades. Long may it continue. Those same selectors — who are expected to announce a squad on Thursday — have an enormous opportunity to balance performance with an eye to the future. Now that they are qualified for the World Test Championship at Lords, the two Tests in Sri Lanka allows them to add a couple of talented young players to the touring squad. Sam Konstas — whose bravery to change the course of the Test matches — will be craving a couple of young buddies within the changing room. At 19-years-old, the rest of the squad are over 30 and all, with the exception of Steve Smith, have children. Cam Green blossomed when Will Pukosvki came into the team a few years ago. He had a mate to hang out with and talk the same lingo with off the park. Adding Cooper Connolly to this squad would go against the philosophy of performance, as he only played four first class games, but he has shown enough in the white ball arena to provide a glimpse of his talent. The 21-year-old has a glorious swing of the bat and averages 61.8 with three 50s. His all-round ability must be a tempting prospect — and, on top of that, imagine what he could learn from Nathan Lyon, Smith and Travis Head while they are playing the way they are. For now, and the future, Konstas and Connolly might add something exciting to the mix of this Australian team. Matt Renshaw, Tim Ward or Jayden Goodwin are the other younger players who might play a similar role while Usman Khawaja is still at the top. Victorian Todd Murphy, Tasmanian Matt Kuhnemann and West Australian Corey Rocchiccioli would also gain great knowledge from spending a few weeks in Sri Lanka working with Lyon — the master and his apprentices, or big brother and little brothers. All of them have similar statistics but bowl differently. What an opportunity for Australian cricket to have three young spinners rubbing shoulders with the great Lyon, who won’t be around forever. Smith will cherish captaining the team during skipper Pat Cummins’ paternity leave and Josh Inglis will be back and craving the opportunity to bat in the middle order, as will McSweeney, who would love a crack in the middle. Rarely do Australian selectors get an opportunity to look to the future, but now they have the Border Gavaskar Trophy back on home soil and the World Test Championship Final locked in, they do tomorrow.