CRICKET: Another retirement as Australia continue to go through transition

The retirement from international cricket of Matthew Hayden was not a complete surprise. His exclusion from the squad for the upcoming one-day series against South Africa, despite being the ICC one-day player of the year in 2007 and Australian one-day player of the year in 2008, indicated that the selectors were going pick by form and Hayden would not be allowed to play through to this summer's Ashes on reputation.

With this summer's big series in mind, the retirement of Australia's most succesful opening batsmen; a man who set a world record individual score of 380 against Zimbabwe during his career, can be placed in the context of a far greater sea change in Australian international cricket.

Since Australia's 5-0 whitewash of England 2 years ago, Hayden, who averaged 50.73 in test matches, is the second batsmen to retire after an illustrious record-breaking career. Wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist, who retired this time last year, reinvented what it meant to be a wicketkeeper-batsmen, scoring 100 sixes in his career, as well as the second fastest test hundred, off only 57 balls, and averaging 47.60.

Australia have also lost the attractive batting of Damien Martyn along with Justin Langer, who as opening partner with the retiring Hayden, struck up with the latter, the second best opening partnership of all time, scoring 5,655 runs together at an average of 51.88 for the first wicket.

In the batting department, however, Australia have coped quite well in the wake of these retirements, especially in the form of Michael Hussey. Hussey has been a revelation in world cricket, currently averaging just below 60 in 34 tests and a quite amazing 57.13 in ODIs (one-day internationals), the latter being an astonishing record, as many of the greatest batsmen have failed to break the 50 barrier for an average in one-day cricket.

Michael Clarke has moulded himself into a vice-captain and Andrew Symonds has proved that, when not causing on- and off-the-field headaches for the administrators, he is not just a one-day player, but a very useful Test all-rounder.

The Aussies recent 2-1 series defeat to South Africa was their first on home turf since they lost by the same margin to a Mike Gatting-led England in 1986-1987. 22 years unbeaten was a very impressive record. The series against the Proteas that led to the demise of the unbeaten record, was characterised not necessarily by lacklustre batting, although the batter's failed to show their usual dominance at home, but infact by the bowling.

Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, both of whom have very strong cases for being included in a Greatest Ever Australian XI, retired from Test cricket in the last Ashes series with their farwell test at the SCG in January 2007. They left an impossible void to fill and Australia's inability to even come close to replacing the pair was ruthlessly exposed by the South Africans.

Sure, Australia have some good bowlers. Left-armer Mitchell Johnson has really shown his worth in the last two series; against India in the sub-continent before Christmas and against Graeme Smith's South Africa over Christmas time. He has bowled with accuracy, swing and sometimes genuine pace.

However, Australia have really missed the injured Stuart Clark, another man who has come to the fore since the 2005 Ashes series. Brett Lee, who was left as the experienced leader of the attack with the retirement of McGrath and Warne, looked very ineffective in the last two series, taking 8 wickets at 61.62 runs each in India and only a solitary wicket for 249 runs in two tests against South Africa.

Stuart MacGill, the leg-spinner who spent his career in the permanent shadow of Warne, failed to perform after the latter's retirement, and has now retired himself despite an impressive record of 208 Test wickets in only 44 matches. Given the number of wickets taken by Warne during the Ashes in England in 2005, this must count as a massive void that South Africa have expolited, and England must look to target during the summer.

And so, the upheavals in Australian cricket should point to England having a good chance at taking back the Ashes on home turf, especially as Marcus Trescothick and Ahley Giles are the only two players from the 2005 side to have retired for England.

But the last two weeks have shown that when it comes to the England cricket team, if it is not one thing it is another, and the diverse range of characters within the dressing room seem to have fought a power struggle, the result being the sacking of Peter Moores as coach at Kevin Pietersen as captain. England seem determined to give the transitional Australia as good a chance as possible, by shooting themselves in the foot during the run-up to the Big One this summer.