Ricky Ponting says national selectors must recall Usman Khawaja for the Boxing Day Test, nominating Shaun Marsh as the unlucky batsman to be squeezed out of Australia's XI.
Australia could hardly have been more clinical in Hobart last week, having enforced the follow-on and defeated the West Indies by an innings and 212 runs.
However, chairman of selectors Rod Marsh and his colleagues will be stewing over a major decision they must make for the second Test.
Khawaja, who tweaked his hamstring in Perth during the second Test against New Zealand, is expected to be passed fit for Sydney Thunder's Big Bash League clash with Melbourne Stars on Sunday night.
It will be Khawaja's one and only match prior to the second Test at the MCG, where Australia will almost certainly complete a series win over the hapless tourists.
Despite Khawaja's lack of match fitness, Ponting insisted the 28-year-old should be recalled after starting the summer with Test centuries in Brisbane and Perth.
"I think Usman has to come straight back into the side," Ponting told reporters on Tuesday.
"The bottom line is Khawaja was in the best XI at the start of summer.
"He played beautifully when he had his opportunity."
Joe Burns has logged scores of 40, 0, 14, 11 and 33 since posting his maiden Test century in Brisbane.
Marsh, who started his sixth stint in the Test side following Khawaja's injury, helped steer Australia to a tense victory over New Zealand in the pink-ball clash at Adelaide Oval.
Marsh then scored 182 in the side's thumping victory at Bellerive.
It's been suggested that Burns could be dropped for Khawaja in a reshuffled order, however Ponting felt it would be wrong to axe the opener.
"Unfortunately I think it's Shaun that has to go back out," he said at a charity event in Melbourne.
The decision is unlikely to have much of a bearing against a struggling Windies side in Melbourne, however selectors will be keen to settle on their first-choice batting order prior to a two-Test series in New Zealand.
First drop has been a source of much consternation for the panel since 2011, when Ponting shuffled down the order in the final stages of his Test career.
Shane Warne felt there were good arguments for and against leaving Khawaja out of the side.
"There's two schools of thought," Warne said.
"One is he had it before he got injured, get him straight back in.
"The other thought is how can you drop these other guys, he has to wait his turn again."
Ponting was worried about the lack of interest in the three-Test series.
"(Boxing Day Test) is one of the iconic games on the world calender. We just hope that can be a good contest," he said.
"The last thing we want to see is 30-40,000 on Boxing Day and the crowd numbers just dwindle after that.
"Test cricket deserves batter than that."
Share
