Winning Wade vows to make presence felt

In the days when Australia’s cricket team were all-conquering, Adam Gilchrist was frequently referred to as the side’s allrounder, for his batting carried that kind of weight. On his recall to the national side in far grimmer times, Matthew Wade’s allround responsibilities appear to be threefold: batting, wicketkeeping and “presence”.

While Wade insists that his glove work has gone up a notch or three since he was dropped for Brad Haddin ahead of the 2013 Ashes series, ending a run of 12 Tests behind the stumps, he also acknowledged his role around the team will be much more multifaceted than simply adding to his tally of dismissals.

At a time when Australian batting could not be at a lower ebb, Wade must bring plenty of runs, after the fashion of his two commendable Test hundreds against the West Indies and Sri Lanka. In particular he must help to fashion lower-order partnerships to extract more value from the home side’s tail – something he enjoys.

“I enjoy that part of the game, I enjoy the scrap,” Wade said on Monday. “I enjoy getting out there when our backs are to the wall. Hopefully that doesn’t come in this Test, but if it does I’m looking forward to getting out there and having a scrap, yeah.”

That liking for a “scrap” has not always paid off for Wade. He has got himself in trouble on the field for aggressive verbal exchanges, most recently in South Africa during the ODI series that preceded these Tests. But in the wake of the captain Steven Smith’s plea for cricketers prepared to fight for the national team cause, a more pugilistic presence behind the …

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