Why the Darwin disaster is a wake-up call for Australian cricket

Darwin: How big was this win for Bangladesh? Before he spoke to the press, touring captain Najmul Hossain Shanto and his teammates received a congratulatory video call from their prime minister.

How bad was this performance by Australia? Every young batter in the country should keep their own phones close in case they get a call of a different kind from the national selectors about a Tuesday flight to join the Test squad in Mackay.

Matt Renshaw, Campbell Kellaway, Sam Konstas, Ollie Peake, your time is coming.

There may be temptations for Australia to view this as a case of rustiness against a team that had played more red ball cricket lately, but that would be a big mistake.

It should instead be viewed as a wake-up call as loud as the sounds of the military jets that have occasionally screeched over Marrara Stadium.

Bangladesh arrived in Australia having been smashed by Zimbabwe in their most recent Test match in Harare. They were lacking Nahid Rana, their fastest and arguably best pace bowler, due to a side strain suffered on the same tour.

And they made a minor internet sensation out of the young left-armer Campbell Thompson after managing to be bowled out for 54 by his accurate but far from terrifying swing bowling in a warm-up match last week.

The Test team known as the Tigers were, by all measures, playing more like the Richmond of 2026 than the 2017, 2019 or 2020 versions.

But from the first morning of this game, they were much the sharper of the two teams, both in thinking and execution.

Mentored by the well-travelled Phil Simmons, they saw a fresh pitch for what it was, a bowl-first opportunity, rather than taking Australia’s path of overcomplicating it as a surface to bat on after it settled down.

Perhaps batting first would have been the right call for Pat Cummins had his top order been capable of some old-fashioned Test match grind, but on most recent evidence they are far too inconsistent for that. Jake Weatherald and Marnus Labuschagne look highly vulnerable to selection change after failing to negotiate tricky day-one conditions or far easier climes a couple of days later.

Travis Head's approach will always come with risk, hence a Test average of little over 40 despite all the memorable moments he has conjured over the past five years. Alex Carey and Beau Webster were both due a quiet game after doing very little wrong in the past two years, and Steve Smith battled without yet looking his best.

That brings us to Australia’s sole batting bright spot this week: Cameron Green. Granted the chance to bat at No.5, he made a hash of the first innings, but in the second played the sensible, powerful innings of which he is capable. Green spoke afterwards of returning to the methods that first made him a dominant player in the Sheffield Shield, and in that act of self-determination he may have found the key to a long career.

Green’s performance as a 27-year-old also showed that it is in youth that Australia can find more upside for the team. Young players who haven’t yet worn a baggy green, or have only done so sparingly, keep the national team vital.