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With Australia’s World Cup troubles dominating the headlines, jockeying for selection is underway amid a Test move expected this summer in the quiet surroundings of the Sheffield Shield.
“I just tried to be consistent with things,” Bancroft told reporters on Friday. “I like to think I’ve improved a lot. I’m slowly getting better with each passing season.”
It was a Bancroft brand against Victoria. He pulled off a tough opening session on day two to thwart the typically miserly Boland and provided composure alongside teenager Tig Willey, who lacked rhythm early in his innings.
When he was not stumping with conviction, Bancroft expertly pushed the ball to frustrate Victoria in warm conditions before taking control when the bowlers tired.
There was also a reverse sweep of a boundary off Murphy in a reminder that Bancroft, 30, has also become an accomplished white-ball batsman in recent seasons.
His disciplined batting was essentially a cut and paste of the indefatigable batting that Bancroft mustered last Shield season, in which he scored 289 more runs than South Australia’s second-placed Daniel Drew and faced 664 more balls than him.
Despite this, Bancroft missed the Australian Ashes squad. The last of his 10 Tests was during the 2019 series against England.
“Naturally, I’m a bit disappointed,” Bancroft said of being overlooked for the Ashes. “The only way to move forward is to focus on what I can control and be as consistent as possible.”
“this [Test cricket] “Something I’d like to do again. If you’re doing the right things, things can come up and kind of happen,” Bancroft said.
Going into the domestic season, Bancroft appeared to be at least behind Harris and Renshaw in the pecking order despite his prolific record in the Shield in recent seasons. He featured against New Zealand A in a two-match four-day series despite managing only 84 runs in four innings.
“I think I paid my dues,” Bancroft said. “Like all of us, I made mistakes. That was a long time ago, and I’ve moved on from that.”
“There’s definitely nothing on my mind moving forward. It would be an honor to represent my country again, but my focus now is on playing for Western Australia.”
His commanding century against Victoria may have been seen by only a few spectators, as the maddened city emerged from the detritus of the AFL post-season, but national selector Tony Dudemide stood out in the stands – and not just metaphorically.
“I noticed he had a new pair of Asics, so I complimented him…they matched his shirt well,” said Bancroft, who has a dry sense of humor.
“He’s obviously watching the game and watching it. There’s no doubt he sees how the players are going throughout the competition.”
With Harris not playing for Perth, and Renshaw and Joel unable to convert half-centuries in their Shield matches, Bancroft has secured the opening points but the race for the coveted Test berth has only just begun.
“I feel like no matter how many runs you score, the satisfaction never seems to be there,” Bancroft said. “Everything else is external. I want to make sure I play well…things will eventually come around at some point.”
Tristan Lavallette is a journalist based in Perth
