When Will he be back?

Australian cricket has a serious Will Pucovski issue at the precise time they are desperate to unearth skilful openers challenging for a Test spotPucovski is comfortably the most talented potential Australian opener but hersquos suffering a major health issue Pucovski has endured an alarming number of concussionsmdashmany in the cricket arenamdashbut his latest one raises an even more disturbing elementIn a Sheffield Shield match Pucovski turned his head and ducked into a Riley Meredith short ball to collect his latest concussion It was bad enough that the blow added to his doubledigit concussion bouts but the method he employed displayed poor techniqueStill suffering symptomsEven though weeks have elapsed since his latest concussion hersquos still suffering symptoms Recent disturbing news says he hasnrsquot yet been cleared for inclusion in the Victorian contract list His contract status now depends on a medical panel review which includes independent expertise This follows Pucovskirsquos withdrawal from a county stint with Leicestershire because of the latest blow sustained in the Sheffield Shield competitionAlso ReadOz wizards two goodTherersquos no doubt his regular concussions are disturbing but even more concerning is his mental healthIf Pucovski were healthy hersquod be ensconced as an Australian Test opener However hersquos only represented Australia once against India in a 2021 TestIf he plays again it would be an extremely audacious selector who chose Pucovski in the Test side If he were prematurely included in a Test XI and then suffered another serious blow the selectors would receive some of the blame Consequently therersquos a major dilemma involved in choosing a fragile player in the Test sideThen therersquos the matter of whether Pucovski would make himself available for Test selection Itrsquos not just the health issue he has to conquer his technique against the short ball is substandard and that problem needs to be resolved Fixing what is a mountainous shortcoming will take a lot of hard workNot that you could blame them but if he plays again fast bowlers will bowl short at Pucovski because they know he has an issue with that delivery No bowler aims to deliberately hurt a player but when they are performing for their living they have to give themselves the best chance of successRealistically Pucovski should play a full season of Shield games without suffering concussion before hersquos considered for Test selection If he were able to achieve that feat it would be reasonable to assume hersquod done the required hard work to reduce any danger he faces from bouncer issuesShort ball problems have dogged Pucovski but they are more relevant now that Australian opener David Warner has retired from Test cricket Raising the stakes even further another Australian opener Usman Khawaja is at the tail end of his career The situation is complicated enough but therersquos also a shortage of talented openers in the Shield competition and a healthy Pucovski would be the ideal candidateOf the current potential openersmdashCameron Bancroft Marcus Harris and Matthew Renshawmdashthe latter is the only player on the right side of thirtySmith far better at No 4Controversially the selectors promoted Steve Smith a substantial figure at No 4 to open following his request to take on the task Despite the move which accommodated two allrounders in Cameron Green and Mitchell Marsh in the Australian Test XI Smith is far better suited to No 4Pucovskirsquos absence also comes at a time when Australia are endowed with a strong bowling attack Pat Cummins Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood have formed a formidable pace triumvirate for a lengthy time and they are ably backed by the reliable Nathan LyonThis talented quartet ensure that Australia rarely chases large totals but they wonrsquot play forever so a stable opening partnership is imperativePucovskirsquos presence at the top of the order wouldrsquove been an important element to Australiarsquos future success Now instead of being a steady Test performer the main consideration is ensuring Pucovski returns to good health