Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Football
Netball
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
"Correct order": Whateley's top order ahead of The Ashes
SEN • October 20th, 2025 8:15 pm
Australia's starting XI remains well and truly up for debate ahead of a huge summer of cricket.
With the top order far from a finished product, all options remain viable just over three weeks out from the first Test against England in this year's Ashes series.
Given the questions surrounding who should bat where, there remains plenty of time for it all to play out over the coming months in the lead up to the opening Test in Perth, with all eyes on the Shield performances of a number of potential openers hoping to fill atop Australia's struggling
With that in mind, SEN's Gerard Whateley has revealed his current top five, with a staunch perspective on the makeup of Australia's top order.
“There’s enough to be concerned about,” Whateley told SEN Mornings.
“We are clearly planning without Pat Cummins for a good portion of the summer. I don’t like the sound of the side issue for Cam Green, regardless of how it’s been portrayed.
“Green needed an uninterrupted run at this series to have his bowling as a threat, and we know what a threat it can be against England. That hasn’t happened, and now we will wait to see how he will bowl in these two Shield games.
“I like the move of taking him out of the white ball scenario to play in the Shield matches, but let’s just see how much bowling he can do. There’s been an understandable rush to make judgements in the ranks of amateur selectors, so thankfully those in charge don’t feel the same rush to make such snap judgements.”
Marnus at three
“Marnus Labuschagne has done exactly what was needed. Century after century after century after century. Don’t apply without centuries; he’s made four of them. Marnus has always responded well to being dropped in white ball cricket; he has done it now in the red ball scene. Australia needs Marnus at his best at number three.
“He hasn’t gone through any major technical reboot, he appears fresh, he is making better decisions and above all, he’s hungry rather than comfortable. That’s a credit to him and a huge relief, and it’s why he should have been dropped earlier. This is the best Marnus, and the best Marnus bats at three, so stop the nonsense of him opening.”
Australia's "best formula"
“Marnus at three, (Steve) Smith at four, (Travis) Head at five. That is Australia’s best formula, and it feels to me like every time we have moved away from that, to move Green in or to experiment with this or that, we have tipped the whole batting lineup out of balance.
“The whiteboard XI is actually pretty stable. I’ve got (Jake) Weatherald in as the opener ahead of (Sam) Konstas. The truth is, Australia needs Konstas making runs. It needs every batter in the country making runs, regardless of who you think should be in or out.
“His first three Shield innings, he didn’t look like a player set up to succeed. In fact, he looked quite scrambled. His half century on Friday at Junction Oval, that was something better. Although it’s all a bit of a thrill ride rather than anything reassuring.
“We don’t need to be so fickle as to judge every shot; let’s see where Konstas is after next week’s Shield match, whether he can make his case in the last of the three that were initially prescribed.”
Weatherald x Khawaja partnership
“For the moment, I’ve got Jake Weatherald as the opener in my whiteboard XI. He looks the most likely to succeed. His game seems in good order, his ability to score square of the wicket puts pressure on the bowlers. He should have made a century last week, and diligence would have demanded that he did, so he might need to make one next week.
“My whiteboard XI has Weatherald ahead of Konstas, depending on what happens next. And it’s got Marnus at three, Smith at four, Head at five, because that’s actually when Australia has been at its most successful.
“There’s a correct order, and Australia’s best order has recently looked like Marnus, Smith and Head, three, four and five. I’m not mucking around with that.”
