Rival backs Renshaw for Test return

Victoria's skipper Cameron White says recently dumped Test opener Matthew Renshaw has refined his technique and is ready to return to international cricket.

Renshaw had endured a torrid summer up until earlier this month after he'd lost his Test spot on the eve of the Magellan Ashes and passed 20 just once in 10 innings in the first half of the JLT Sheffield Shield season.

But a first-innings half-century on the resumption of the Shield two weeks ago was followed by a breakthrough knock of 170 against the Bushrangers last week, his fifth first-class century and his first since his maiden Test ton at the SCG in January last year.

White, who watched the left-hander's 212-ball innings up close, said the manner in which the 21-year-old batted indicated he's ready to return to the top level.

"He's ready to go back whenever the Australia selectors see fit," White told RSN927.

"What I did see from Matt Renshaw was a straightening out of his technique.

"When he played for Australia I think his front foot was going across too much and not straight down the wicket. And it was the same with his head position. What I saw this week was really good alignment from his feet, his head position was really good and his footwork and decision making was therefore really good as well. I thought it was a real big improvement on what I'd seen from 12 months ago.

"It was a very good innings, probably as well as I've ever seen him bat."

The man who replaced Renshaw in the Test side, WA batsman Cameron Bancroft, will take on a South Africa A in Benoni on Thursday night as part of Australia's preparations for their four-Test series against the Proteas next month.

Bancroft appears certain to play in the first Test in Durban from March 1, but he will be desperate for runs to secure his spot having averaged 25 with the bat in the Ashes.

The fact that Bancroft and vice-captain David Warner are the only specialist openers in the touring party is a strong show of faith in the Test rookie from national selectors, although selection chairman Trevor Hohns said last month there were "other options" to open the batting if required during the series.

One of those options is Usman Khawaja, who was a temporary opener alongside Renshaw in his Queensland teammate's Test debut in November 2016, and will open alongside Bancroft in Benoni with Warner missing the tour match due to Australia's T20 duties.

While a recall for the South African tour appears unlikely for Renshaw unless there's an injury, he's focused on leading his Bulls side - who currently sit on top of the Shield ladder - into the competition's final next month.

The left-hander played just one KFC BBL match for Brisbane Heat during the mid-season break, but said the intrusion of T20 cricket into the season enabled him to tighten his technique for a return to his preferred format.

"The Twenty20 cricket really helped me work on keeping my head as still as possible," he said last week.

"The guys that do well there keep their head still, and I tried to apply that with red-ball cricket, and it really worked for me today.

"I have been working on quite a few things over the past month-and-a-half. To have them all come together this week has been really exciting. 

"It is just about trying to enjoy my cricket and win games for Queensland. We are a young group and a lot of us haven't been involved in a Shield final or victory, so that is something we are really striving for."

Qantas tour of South Africa

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), David Warner (vc), Cameron Bancroft, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Jon Holland, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Tim Paine, Jhye Richardson, Chadd Sayers, Mitchell Starc.

Warm-up match v South Africa A, Sahara Park, Benoni, Feb 22-24

First Test Kingsmead, Durban, March 1-5

Second Test St George's Park, Port Elizabeth, March 9-13

Third Test Newlands, Cape Town, March 22-26

Fourth Test Wanderers, Johannesburg, March 30-April 3