With the opening Test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy just one month away, there was plenty of interest in the second round of Sheffield Shield matches hosted in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.

Australia’s Test stars Mitchell Starc and Steve Smith enjoyed contrasting fortunes at the MCG, while the quest to find an opener to partner Usman Khawaja will stretch into the Australia A vs India A matches after a dearth of runs by the leading aspirants.

Meanwhile, off-spinners Todd Murphy and Corey Rocchiccioli were excellent as they look further afield to the Test series in Sri Lanka early next year, while veteran Victorian Scott Boland returned with distinction in a promising sign for Australia.

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THE FOLLOW-ON PODCAST: Cricket legend Brett Lee tackles the big Aussie Test selection questions, India’s surprise loss and New Zealand’s dream day.

DOES ANYONE WANT THE JOB AT THE TOP OF THE AUSTRALIAN BATTING ORDER?

As debate rages about who should open the batting alongside Usman Khawaja this summer, a significant problem emerged this week, with the leading candidates for the vacancy failing to press their case in the Sheffield Shield.

None of the five options who have been namechecked by national selector George Bailey reached fifty in the second round of Sheffield Shield fixtures, reviving calls for a middle-opener to occupy the vacant spot in the Test starting XI.

After making a pair to open the season, Cameron Bancroft managed just 10 runs in two digs on home turf in the West against Tasmania.

Also batting at home on the MCG, Marcus Harris must have wondered whether he had walked under a ladder after twice being dismissed by Australian quick Mitchell Starc caught down the leg side for scores of 26 and 16.

The New South Wales prodigy Sam Konstas has been a headline maker and probably fared best of the hopefuls when rebounding from an unlucky LBW off the bowling of Scott Boland to make 43 in the second innings at the MCG before falling to off-spinner Todd Murphy.

“He’s a young man, he’s going to make mistakes,” Blues captain Moises Henriques said of Konstas’ second-innings dismissal.

“He was pretty gutted, and he knew the mistake he made as soon as he came off. He’s a young man. He’s got a lot of learning to do.”

Bancroft, Harris and Konstas will each get an opportunity to press their case for Test selection during the upcoming Australia A series against India A, but the same can’t be said for Queensland’s Matthew Renshaw.

The left-hander, who featured in Australia’s Test squad last summer, has endured a horror run of form in the Sheffield Shield this year, while Konstas’ partner at the top for NSW Nic Maddison also missed out with scores of 19 and 15 at the MCG.

THE LEFT-FIELD OPTIONS

Australian great Brett Lee nominated all-rounder Mitch Marsh as a potential opener in a discussion with Fox Cricket podcast The Follow On this week should selectors opt to look beyond a traditional opener for the role. But there could be another option waiting in the West.

While the nation’s openers failed to meet expectations, Western Australian wicketkeeper Josh Inglis continued to push his Test credentials with another Sheffield Shield century against Tasmania at the WACA.

The right-hander, who is yet to make his Test debut, scored 101 in the first innings before cracking a rapid 26 not out to rescue the hosts after an early collapse on day four.

Inglis typically bats at No. 6 or 7 for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield, but he has opened the batting on several occasions in the white-ball formats. According to NSW coach Greg Shipperd, Inglis could “absolutely” face the new ball against India this summer.

“Let’s not forget Josh Inglis as well, who I think is probably a smokey in terms of the opening the batting,” Shipperd said.

“His performances for Australia have been first class, and I think they’re looking for that style of player at the top of the order, and Inglis may fit that brief.

“He’s a right-handed version of David Warner, in terms of someone who wants to get on with the play, and he’s got strokes all around the wicket. He’s played at the level internationally, and I think he’s a well-respected player.”

South Australian Nathan McSweeney, who has accumulated 291 runs at 97.00 in this season’s Sheffield Shield, has also been touted as an option to open the batting this summer, albeit out of position.

It would be remiss not to mention Warner, who retired from international cricket earlier this year but recently indicated he’d be willing to return for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy if national selectors wanted him.

However, Rogers laughed off the notion of Warner playing Test cricket this summer.

“Davey’s been Davey, he’s looking for a reaction,” Rogers said.

“I had to laugh. I thought to myself, ‘Maybe I should come to this press conference and say I’m ready to go,’ but then I did see Mitch Starc bowling and I thought ‘No chance.’ He’s looking for a bit of a reaction, and he’s certainly got one.”

THE UNDERSTUDIES TO THE GOAT

Inglis is currently serving as an understudy to Alex Carey, who continued his blistering form with the bat for South Australia in its 129 run win over Queensland in Brisbane, but he is not the only reserve to fire in the second round of matches.

On either sides of the Nullarbor Victorian Todd Murphy and Western Australian Corey Rocchiccioli excelled when helping spin their sides to triumphs over New South Wales and Tasmania respectively.

Murphy, who has played six Tests, was troubled by injury last season but was in stellar form with both the ball and bat at the MCG.

The 23-year-old took 2-16 in five overs in the first innings and then secured the scalp of Konstas when deceiving the teenage prodigy in the second innings to finish with 3-71 from 25 overs in a match where champion spinner Nathan Lyon secured 2-139 from 41 overs.

Victorian captain Will Sutherland said it was pleasing to see Murphy back at his best after the struggles he had throughout 2023/24.

“I can clearly see the difference from last year to this year. He’s just got that power sort of back in his shoulder,” he said.

“He’s hardly bowling (any) bad balls. It’s not exactly that conducive to spin out here at the MCG and he was still able to create plenty of turn on both sides of the bat and pick up key wickets here and there. That one of Konstas really stands out.

“(We’re) really confident with where his game is at with some Aussie A stuff coming up, and who knows from there? But he seems in a good place.”

It was not only with the ball that Murphy contributed. Former Test opener and Victorian coach Chris Rogers said the 36 runs he made in the second innings when taking the fight to the rampaging Starc helped to take the match out of NSW hands.

“What I love about Murph is just his smarts,” Rogers said.

“I’m probably going to say to this group (but it was the) little things like knocking over the last two wickets in two balls (in the first innings). I know that it probably doesn’t seem much, but it’s quite critical to the momentum the game. And he did it with … balls that almost swung past the outside edge and bowled them. I’m not sure he would have been able to figure that out a couple years ago, but … now he seems to understand the game.

“And then his batting in that second innings was crucial. He counterattacked when he had to — when Mitchell Starc’s bowling bumpers at you, you’re not just going to stand there — and he took it on and got us to a position where I don’t think we were ever going to lose that game.

“I just see a really intelligent cricketer who’s got over a few injury problems and looks to be back to his best.”

Over in Perth, Rocchiccioli was excellent. He snared Jake Weatherald when the Tasmanian opener was settled in the first innings on route to taking 4-70 from 24.3 overs and then claimed 2-32 from 14 overs on Wednesday as the visitors crumbled to be all out for 137.

The 27-year-old has promised to “bang the door down” when he bowls alongside Murphy in the Australia A versus India A matches in Mackay and at the MCG beginning on Thursday week with a view towards snaring a spot on the Sri Lanka tour.

“I think I’ve got five more Shield games and the Aussie A game to prove that I’m a candidate for it, and that means I’ve simply got to bang the door down with a sledgehammer,” he said.

SENIOR UNDERSTUDY PUTS HAND UP FOR ROTATION ROLE

Scott Boland is the undisputed MCG maestro.

The 35-year-old, Victoria’s leading wicket-taker in Sheffield Shield history, is relentless with the red Kookaburra at the iconic Melbourne venue and this week’s 141-run victory over New South Wales was no exception.

Boland was all over Blues batting prodigy Konstas in the first innings, dismissing the teenager LBW for 2 soon after an outside edge fell marginally short of the slips cordon.

He was even more damaging on day three, removing opener Nic Maddinson and Australian teammate Steve Smith in a near-flawless opening spell.

The right-armed seamer does not hoop the ball around corners, but he generates enough nibble off the surface to constantly threaten both edges of the bat, as New South Wales skipper Moises Henriques noted after the match on Wednesday.

Boland has not represented Australia since the 2023 Ashes series, spending each of last summer’s seven Tests carrying drinks as Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins ran through the opposition in bowler-friendly conditions.

Those seven matches all finished before the end of the fourth day, giving Australia’s quicks an additional day to recover between Tests, something Starc identified as critical to allowing the premier pacemen to play every match.

However, bowler rotation could be a necessity for the five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India, which gets underway next month, especially with all-rounder Cameron Green unavailable to help carry the load.

If reinforcements are required this summer, whether due to injury or workload management, national selectors would be tempted to unleash Boland in front of his home crowd on Boxing Day. Victorian coach Chris Rogers declared he “was ready” to go on Wednesday.

His exploits at the MCG over the past decade were a big reason he was picked ahead of Michael Neser for the 2021 Boxing Day match, when Boland famously claimed 6-7 on debut.

The Victorian did not feature in last summer’s Boxing Day Test against Pakistan, but the Melbourne fans were eager to see him, chanting “We want Boland” as he patrolled the boundary rope.

“It’s pretty cool going for a walk around the boundary and have everyone shouting your name, wanting autographs and stuff. It is pretty humbling,” Boland told Fox Cricket last month.

During the previous Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign at home in 2020/21, Australia persisted with the same bowling attack for all four Tests, with the accumulated fatigue taking its toll on the final day at the Gabba.

Whether the Tests against India go the distance this summer could determine if Boland gets an opportunity to add to his ten Test caps.

“We’ve got some good stock and we’ll see where we get to for the series,” Starc said.