"The heat is going to be on" - Adam Gilchrist feels Joe Burns is barely doing enough to keep his place
World Cup winner Adam Gilchrist feels Joe Burns and the Australian batting lineup will be under pressure after failing to produce the goods once again. After winning the toss, Australia were bowled out for 195 on Day 1 of the Melbourne Test.
Joe Burns, who scored an unbeaten 51 in Adelaide, failed to build on that performance as Jasprit Bumrah scalped him for a duck. The dismissal saw Burns' woeful run of form continue.
Speaking to Foxsports.com.au, Gilchrist feels it will be tough to justify Joe Burns' selection for another game. The former Aussie wicketkeeper said:
''The heat is going to be on. The heat is going to be on all of them… the focus was clearly on Burns before the first Test, he just did enough to get here. It’s just the first innings scores, since 97, 98 in the first Test last year he barely got to double figures of a Test match. That’s going to weigh heavily against him. We saw in the second innings in Adelaide he did enough, but it’s definitely going to be tough.”
David Warner is a strong contender to replace Burns if the former recovers from a groin injury for the third Test. Gilchrist doesn't have qualms in having two left-handers at the top of the order if Warner plays in place of Joe Burns.
''You get your best batters in position; however, it falls in terms of left hand, right hand it doesn’t matter, you just get your best combo.'' said Gilchrist.
Joe Burns' woeful season so far
The 31-year-old was fortunate to play the Adelaide Test as Australia were going through an injury crisis at the top of the order. As mentioned earlier, Warner was unavailable because of his groin injury. Will Pucovski, who was in line to make his debut in Adelaide, missed out because of a concussion he suffered in the warm-up game against India A.
Joe Burns didn't instil much confidence going in the Test series as he managed scores of 4,0,0 and 1 against India A. After falling without scoring in Melbourne, his place in the team is in jeopardy for the third Test.