Wicketkeeping great Ian Healy has lashed Australia’s performance against Pakistan, saying the Aussies played like ‘schoolyard bullies’ during their ODI against Pakistan at the MCG.

Pat Cummins saved the day, scoring an unbeaten 32 off 31 balls to steer Australia to victory with 99 balls left.

But things were looking dicey when Australia slumped to 7-155 while chasing the meagre total of 204.

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Healy took aim, in particular, at openers Jake Fraser-McGurk (16) and Matt Short (1), who both gave away their wicket cheaply.

“We have got a lot to learn,” Healy said on SEN.

“We are gearing up for a Champions Trophy so there aren’t many trials before a team has to be selected.

“We should be playing these games properly but they are treating it like a schoolyard.

“It wasn’t good enough. We won but just and with 17 overs to spare.

“Gone is the ability to just knock it around. It took Josh Inglis and Steve Smith to slow things down and even they got themselves out with shots that were false.

“Our shot selection was poor and to me, Matt Short and Jake Fraser-McGurk were playing like schoolyard bullies.

“The disregard for the conditions wasn’t good enough. The (Australian) bowlers and Mitch Starc said during the innings break that the pitch was two-paced and uneven in bounce.

“So what do we do? We think we can go out and slog the Pakistani bowlers all over the place.

“The batters didn’t learn anything from what the bowlers had told them, they didn’t regard the opposition enough.

“When the Pakistan bowlers got on a roll, they were hard to suppress.

“The Australian boys’ egos weren’t able to be put away for even half an hour.

“Inglis and Smith did it and then Pat Cummins had to do it.”

Meanwhile, Australia’s selectors could hand Nathan McSweeney the hardest challenge of any debutant opener in almost 50 years, if they opt to blood the rookie in the first Test against India.

Selectors are poised to name their squad for the Perth Test in coming days, with McSweeney emerging as the front-runner to fill the vacant spot at the top of the order despite having never opened in Sheffield Shield cricket.

Officials will wait until at least after the first innings of Australia A’s match against India A before naming their squad, giving Cameron Bancroft, Marcus Harris and Sam Konstas all one last chance to impress.

But for now McSweeney is the clear favourite to take the injured Cameron Green’s spot in the XI, as the form man of the first part of the Australian summer.

There remains some chance he could come into the side and bat at No.3, with Cummins indicating on Sunday it was possible Marnus Labuschgane could open.

The other option would be to open with McSweeney, with the 25-year-old’s only previous experience against the new ball being when his side has lost early wickets.

Selectors could potentially show their hand and open with McSweeney in the tour match on Thursday, pushing Harris or Konstas down the order.

– With AAP