Open season for opening batsmen

The flood of serious contenders for Justin Langer's Test spot has been reduced by one after Ricky Ponting decided Michael Hussey would remain at No. 4. Finding an opening partner for Matthew Hayden will be the selectors' major dilemma before the first Test against Sri Lanka in November and they must choose between a couple of specialists and a talented middle-order pair.

Despite being an opener for most of his career, Hussey will remain below Ponting to avoid unnecessary disruptions to a side that is redeveloping after the retirements of Langer, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. In an intense competition, the left-handers Phil Jaques and Chris Rogers are jousting with Shane Watson and Brad Hodge, who have requested the out-of-position promotion in an effort to bypass the settled middle order.

"There are a lot of candidates," Jaques said at the team camp in Queensland. "Everybody has their merits and everybody has runs on the board. The selectors have to make the choice and hopefully I'll be in the team."

Three other batsmen in the squad were feeling the same way. Jaques and Rogers will be in the best positions to impress when they go head-to-head as part of the Australia A tour of Pakistan starting next week. While Watson and Hodge will have to hope for playing time in the Twenty20 World Championship and one-day tour of India, Jaques and Rogers will have two first-class games and three limited-overs fixtures before returning to Australia for a conventional build up to the Pura Cup.

"It probably will come down to who is doing the best at the start of the season," Ponting said. "I haven't really sat down with all the selectors about which way they're heading or what they are looking at. 'Watto' is going with us on the one-day series; Jaques and Rogers will certainly have a bit of a head-start there and we'll see how they start off the season."

Jaques, who has played two Tests, has had to answer the same questions about his international ambitions since Langer announced his retirement in January. He is pleased a final decision is getting closer but, like Rogers, he has just returned from a below-par campaign in the English County Championship. Both men averaged in the low 30s and neither thought the low returns would affect their Test prospects.

"There are so many opportunities over the next few months that if you do well it won't matter," Rogers said. "It's hard to tell what the selectors will think. I'm trying not to worry about it too much or look too far forward. I just want to have a good few months and show the form of last year."

In 2006-07 Rogers jumped from a consistent operator at Western Australia to a Cricket Australia contract holder with 1202 runs at 70.70, including 279 to open his campaign. Jaques experienced his first serious slump, but was satisfied with his recovery and posted 987 Pura Cup runs.

"The Pakistan tour will be a massive trip," Rogers said. "Opening with 'Jaquesy' will be good. If one of us can score a few runs it might help down the line."

What also benefits them is their knowledge of the position and the years spent dealing with new balls and opening bowlers. Hodge has been an outstanding top-order batsman for Victoria and Watson has walked out first in one-day internationals, but catapulting either of them into a foreign position would be a risky option, especially as neither player has been a Test regular.

Watson's all-round credentials may sway the selectors and the decision would allow Australia the luxury of picking two allrounders. "It is an interesting one for sure," Ponting said. "I would imagine Andrew Symonds would start [in the Test team]. Maybe Watson and 'Symmo' can play in the same side. If that happens, Watson's got to bat up the top of the order somewhere. He has given every indication that he could do that."

Hayden is excited about welcoming a new partner and introducing him to the rituals of what he calls the "engine room". The selection battles are familiar to him - he lost out to Michael Slater on the 1993 Ashes tour and eventually reignited his career when he replaced Greg Blewett in 2000 - and he would be disappointed if there wasn't a fierce rivalry for the honour.

"It's such an important role to the success of the side," he said. "It's cruel because there's only one spot - you'd love to be able to divide it into ten - but someone will be disappointed."

The only certainty is it won't be Hussey. He has spent four Tests as an opener, including his first two, but is happy to defer his personal preference to suit the best interests of the team. "I've played most of my cricket at opener," he said. "But whatever Ricky thinks is best for Australia, I'm 100% behind it." At the start of the summer he will be at No. 4.