Kurtis Patterson: Future of Australian cricket?

By Adrian Meredith

VICTORIA, Australia (TheSportsNext) August 7, 2012: Following the Under 19 matches, I happened to notice an Australian batsman by the name of Kurtis Patterson.

I noticed him because he top scored in a match against Pakistan Under 19s where he scored 83, virtually the only score above 20 in a match that Pakistan dominated.

That kind of performance really stands out. It shows the kind of character of a player that does well under pressure. Someone who would cope well under international pressure. This was what Michael Clarke was like at the Under 19 level. And Mitchell Marsh too for that matter. Not to mention Brett Lee.

He then failed in the next match but the match later he again top scored, this time to win the match against the same Pakistan Under 19 side that had flogged them. In a close match, he had shown the kind of temperament to win a match virtually off his own bat.

I looked back through his scores and, while he has failed a few times, suggesting that he needs to work on giving away his wicket too early, he also scored very well on many occasions. He seemed to be averaging around 40-50 in Under 19 international level, in one day matches. He was easily the best of the Australian Under 19 batsmen, so far above the others that it was like he was in another league.

I looked at his profile and he has actually made his first class debut. He scored 157 and 6 not out, top scoring and then scoring the winning runs in the 2nd innings. It was a fairly easy win but just the same to score over 150 on his first class debut was impressive. The other team, Western Australia, fought back too, but his presence kept them in the hunt.

He has only played the 1 FC match so has the Bradman-esque average of 163.00. Actually, it isn't just Bradman-esque, it is much better than Bradman managed. It makes Bradman look like a part timer.

His Under 19 form seems to more correctly reflect his potential though. He has averaged 40-50.

If he were to be put into the Australian test team right now, with the troubles we have had with batting, he would be a very good chance to do well. It might be too early but quite frankly it might not. We have been experimenting with young bowlers with very little experience so why not experiment with a young batsman? Kurtis Patterson is the one to go for if they were to do that.

It may not be quite the right time to show Ponting the door but I think that if we can find a way in for this guy, we should do it. There is no point waiting too long on him. He could well be ready right now.