Only Cameron Bancroft deserves to replace me: Matthew Wade

Australian wicketkeeper Matthew Wade has been dropped from the Ashes squad for the first two Tests as the selectors decided to back Tasmanian teammate Tim Paine. The former hasn’t played a Test in the last seven years but when the selectors asked themselves who the best wicketkeeper in the country was they agreed on his name. Western Australia’s Cameron Bancroft was also considered a serious candidate and Wade believes only he had done enough to replace him in the squad.

Wade’s lack of runs has become a pressing issue in the Australian side as they have struggled to get-in consistent performances from the middle and lower orders. His overall Test average is 28.58 in 22 Tests, but since returning to the side against South Africa in Adelaide, he has 263 runs at 20.23 and has passed 50 only once in 16 innings.

Only Bancroft

Ahead of the announcement of the team, the 29-year-old felt that he had done enough to retain his place but if someone was to replace him it could only be Bancroft. While Bancroft is still raw in terms of ‘keeping at first-class level, he was one of the country’s premier glovemen in his teenage years.

Speaking to the media, Wade had said, “Absolutely I hope the trust is there There is no-one – Bancroft is the only one probably in the last couple of games that have put the weight of runs on the board.

Wade added, “He has kept the last couple of games. Apart from that, I haven’t really seen anyone else around the country throw their hand up to say: ‘It’s my spot’. Obviously, I have done it for a long period of time now.”

Wade struggled to find form ever since his return last summer

He was recalled to the side last summer after almost a three-year absence. However, he believes, should he be dropped now, his Test career will be all but over. His poor form with the willow also saw him being axed for a match during the recent one-day series in India. Following that, he would have hoped for a turnaround in luck. But his poor show plied over to the domestic season in the Sheffield Shield too. He scored trivial scores of one and six against Western Australia, nine and 17 against Queensland and five in his only innings against Victoria.