More than meets the eye in Renshaw

Test rookie Matthew Renshaw produced a stoic, stubborn innings to guide Australia to a consolation victory in Adelaide, but we’ve seen only one part of his game, according to teammate Usman Khawaja.

Renshaw scored 34 from 137 balls in just under three hours to steer Australia to their fourth innings of target 127 against the Proteas, a knock that featured 122 dot balls and underlined his determination and ability to bat for long periods.

Those are the same characteristics his captain Steve Smith demanded his players possess after the second Test loss in series that lead to a seismic overhaul of the Test team and Renshaw’s selection alongside fellow debutants Peter Handscomb and Nic Maddinson.

While the crowd might have grown impatient as Renshaw blocked and blocked despite the victory target within reach of a few lusty blows, Khawaja says the 20-year-old has more than one gear to his game and can up the ante if necessary.

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“He’s a got a really good temperament, a really good head on him,” Khawaja said.

“What you saw during this Test match was one bit of Matt Renshaw’s game.

“He does have a very good temperament, he has a good defence he plays the ball well and late.

“But hopefully you’ll be able to see the other part of him.

“I’ve seen him take down some attacks. I’ve seen him come against a few spinners and heave them for some big sixes and really change gears.

“He’s 20 years old playing Test cricket. I think he’s doing great as a 20-year-old, he’s doing great if he was a 25-year-old.”

Renshaw’s unbeaten knock in the second innings complemented his first dig in the Baggy Green, where despite only scoring 10, the left-hander soaked up 46 balls in the more than an hour at the crease.

Initiations don’t get much tougher than walking out to bat under flood lights, against a pink ball on a seaming wicket against perhaps the best pace attack in the world with 12 overs to go until stumps.

But the Queenslander survived, defying the Proteas’ advances to allow his countrymen the best of the batting conditions the following day.

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“I was just trying to have fun but once the crowd got going that was the hard part. I had to just keep myself grounded and not do something stupid,” Renshaw told ABC Grandstand after play on day four.

“It’s pretty hard when the crowd gets up and adrenalin gets up. You want to play the big shot but you don’t want to get out.

“I was just coming in and playing the way it works for me in Shield cricket which is to bat as long as possible and let the bowler make a mistake first.

“Generally I just try and play as long as possible. So just batting for a long time is quite fun for me.

“It’s been incredible. I have been standing at first slip next to Steve Smith, and seeing how his brain ticks that’s another big thing from the week."

After sharing a 61-run partnership with Renshaw during Australia’s pursuit, Smith liked what he saw of the 193cm opener.

“I thought (Renshaw) played quite well,” Smith said.

“He knows his game very well. He got beaten a lot but he wasn’t chasing the ball, he was keeping his line (against) some quality bowlers that nip the ball quite a bit.

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“You can’t afford to follow them, something I thought Usman did particularly well in the first innings well.

“He didn’t seem fazed by it at all, he just got on with it and made them bowl to him and when they got a bit straighter he picked them off.

“That’s the way he goes about his game.

“It was nice for him and Petey, two guys on debut to be there at the end.”

Australia now heads into one-day mode for the three-match Chappell-Hadlee Trophy against New Zealand, which starts on Sunday in Sydney, before regrouping to take on Pakistan at the Gabba on December 15.

The Test XI Australia fielded in Adelaide was the youngest side in 30 years, and Smith hopes to have the same group in action for the foreseeable future.

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“You don’t grow overnight,” Smith said.

“It’s a good opportunity for this side to play a little bit together and continue to improve and to know each other’s games and get better as a team.

“It was a great start but still plenty of work to do.”

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