Here’s a fact: no new opener in the last 40 years of Australian Test cricket has fared worse than Nathan McSweeney.

Here’s another fact, though, that should supersede the first one: no new opener in the last 40 years of Australian Test cricket has been so completely and spectacularly thrown into the deep end like Nathan McSweeney.

It’s a small price to pay for a baggy green cap, granted: but the 25-year old has been asked to bat in an unfamiliar position, which just happens to be the most difficult spot in which to bat in world cricket right now, in a blockbuster series against a formidable opponent, who boasts the best paceman in the game in Jasprit Bumrah.

Even battling just one of these challenges would be an almighty task for a young player finding his feet at the top level – to have to cope with all of them is an almost farcical level of expectation that McSweeney has been dealt across his first three Tests. They might as well have asked him to solve the Gaza conflict while they were at it.

But having handed him the ultimate baptism of fire for which the cards have been stacked against him from the outset to succeed – and with an average of 14.4 and just one score above 10 for the series, he certainly hasn’t defied the odds – to omit him now, as the Australian selectors have reportedly done for the Boxing Day Test, would be an even greater mistake.

McSweeney deserved his spot in the Test team – he was the best-credentialled Sheffield Shield batter available based not just on his start to this season but also an excellent 2023/24 campaign.

Added to his clear leadership potential, having captained Brisbane Heat to last year’s BBL title and as both South Australia and Australia A’s skipper, and the desperate need to inject some youth into an ageing Test XI plus find a long-term opening solution, there were good reasons to pick him despite the drawbacks.

Dropping him now flies in the face of that logic: poor start or not, Australian cricket is facing a flashpoint where, with ten of eleven players on the wrong side of 30 and at least half of them rapidly approaching the end, rejuvenation of the side is essential.

The impact such a brutal culling could have on McSweeney’s confidence is unknown, but he wouldn’t be the first bright spark to be drastically rattled by being dropped.

Matt Renshaw lost his way completely after being ditched despite a reasonable start to life as a Test opener, while the late Phillip Hughes never rediscovered the form he showed in his famous first five Tests when selectors, as they are doing now with McSweeney, panicked in the midst of a blockbuster series.

As for his replacements, Konstas, as bright as his star has shone this summer, was deemed not ready yet for the challenge of facing Bumrah and co., yet if reports are to be believed, it’s him who will take McSweeney’s opening spot in Melbourne.

And based on what? A century in a glorified one-dayer on a flat Canberra pitch against an Indian attack sans Bumrah, and a rapid-fire half-century on BBL debut against the might of Henry Thornton, James Bazley and Cameron Boyce?

Konstas is a remarkable talent, and his time is fast coming: but if he wasn’t the answer at the start of the summer, the sample size of what he has done since is simply too small to justify backing him in now – especially if it’s a fellow future prospect getting the bullet.

Even worse would be giving Josh Inglis the nod – a fine and dynamic batter with or without the keeping gloves, he’s not just a middle-order player in first-class cricket, but doesn’t even open often against the white ball.

He’s even more of a square peg in a round hole than McSweeney was when it comes to shoehorning someone into opening the batting.

One can only imagine if that experiment was tried and didn’t work, he’d be similarly hung out to dry by the selectors when it comes to picking teams and squads for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka as well as the Ashes next summer.

But by far the most farcical aspect of McSweeney’s looming omission is that it comes as part of a team where for years it has seemed impossible for a batter to get dropped.

Remember David Warner’s two years of low scores home and away before at last being able to retire on his own terms?

Or how about Marnus Labuschagne, averaging 27 across 15 Tests in this World Test Championship cycle?

Or Usman Khawaja, with 63 runs to McSweeney’s 70 this summer at the ripe old age of 38?

Or even Mitchell Marsh, last summer’s hero but desperately out of form this time around, and without even the advantage of bowling anything more than cameo overs?

It is that final trio who should be under greater pressure for their spots than McSweeney should Konstas’ form be deemed so irresistible as to mandate his inclusion – or should change be deemed necessary to make after three Tests of flaky batting rescued by the brilliance of Travis Head.

Leaving out Labuschagne would enable McSweeney to drop back to the No.3 spot that he has made his own for the Redbacks – I’d argue that really, he should have been able to start at No.6 and then work his way up in the manner of most Australian batting greats in years gone by, but the horse has bolted on that one.

Roar editor Christy Doran made the trip to Seattle with VisitSeattle.org, diving into the city’s electric sports vibe, outdoor adventures, and renowned food scene. Click here for his latest adventure in the Emerald City.

Making the call on Khawaja would address an issue that is slowly reaching crisis point, not just for this summer but next year’s Ashes.

A great servant he has been, but an underperforming 38-year old who has never been more than acceptable in the field should always be easier to drop than anyone just starting out – though there is a certain irony in Khawaja now being saved by the very same selection cowardice that prevented him ever getting a solid run in the Test team during his fledgling years between 2011 and 2015.

The Australian batting line-up has many glaring issues at the moment. McSweeney, for all his struggles, should be a long way down the list of fixes.

He was thrown into the deep end this summer. To punish him for that would be more disgraceful by far – and a potential disaster in the making.