Allan Border proposes drastic overhaul of Australian cricket

Allan Border, one of the country's greatest captains, has called for a complete overhaul of Australian cricket after the Baggy Green suffered its fifth consecutive Test defeat at the hands of South Africa in Adelaide on Tuesday.

Since the defeat, Rod Marsh has stepped down as chief of selectors ahead of the third and final Test at the Adelaide Oval starting Nov. 24.

In the aftermath of Marsh stepping down, Cricket Australia has appointed Trevor Hohns as chief selector besides adding Greg Chappell to the panel. Both appointments have been made on a temporary basis.

Border reckons that the problems persisting with Australian cricket start at the grassroot level, stating that the country needed to improve its first-class structure before returning to elite status at the international level.

The Sheffield Shield, a domestic first-class tournament which began in 1892, has been reduced to a laughing stock in recent years, with most of the top performers not considered for the national team.

READ: Did South Africa captain Faf du Plessis cheat during Hobart Test?

In the eyes of many analysts, the tournament lacks cut-throat competition and isn't the ideal platform to breed quality Test cricketers. However, Border feels Australian cricket must return to its roots.

“It’s (Sheffield Shield) the traditional breeding ground for the Australian team,” Border said during a telecast of Inside Cricket (via news.com.au) on Wednesday.

Border insisted that historically great Australian teams were put together by top performers in the Sheffield Shield. “When that’s (first-class cricket) strong, the Aussie team looks after itself.

“I think it’s been treated like a glorified practice match — experimenting with balls, styles of play, pitches and different experiments. I think we need to have a look at it and how it’s played," added Border.

READ: LeBron James has season-high 14 assists, Cavs beat Raptors in thriller

Meanwhile, ESPN Cricinfo is reporting that Cricket Australia hasn't set a deadline regarding the appointment of a selection panel. They are to reportedly adopt a wait-and-watch policy, perhaps giving the likes of Hohns, Chappell and Mark Waugh a fair shot at putting together a winning squad.

It's fair to say that Australian cricket has hit rock bottom. Incidentally, Allan Border was the captain of the team when the team suffered a similar downturn in the 1980s. It was Border's captaincy which brought the Baggy Green back to elite status. Can current captain Steven Smith be able to replicate Border's feats?