Talking points before South Africa series, Scott Boland, David Warner

Has Australia ever won a Test series as convincingly as this?

There’s undeniably talent in this West Indies squad, but the visitors hardly put up a fight over the past fortnight, failing to even take 10 wickets in an innings.

However, it gives Australia a timely confidence boost ahead of the South Africa Test series, which gets underway at the Gabba on Saturday.

But not everything has gone to plan for the Australians.

BOLAND OFFICIALLY CREAM OF THE CROP

At first, it seemed lucky that Scott Boland would become a one-Test player.

As a 33-year-old Australian quick, he has suffered the misfortune of sharing the entire prime of his professional career with possibly the best pace attack the nation has ever had in Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.

Then it felt like a dream that Boland would not only take a dumbfounding 6-7 against England at the MCG, but go on to play two more Tests.

Boland was then kept on the sidelines this year for all three matches in Pakistan, two in Sri Lanka, and the first back home against the West Indies.

It was nice while it lasted – we all got far more than we bargained for, after all.

But after another dream spell under lights at the Adelaide Oval on Saturday, both Boland and his cult following now find themselves asking how long can this thing last?

As it turns out, it could for quite some time yet.

Hazlewood is highly unlikely to play the first Test against South Africa at the Gabba next week and Boland is almost certain to keep his spot.

It’s within the realm of possibility that Hazlewood, who is battling a minor side strain – the same injury that kept him out of four Tests last summer – misses more than just Brisbane.

Boland could have five, six, even seven Tests to his name by the end of the summer, heading into a new year that will feature tours of India and England.

Australia’s bowling depth is exceptional; Michael Neser and Jhye Richardson average less than 24 in first class cricket, Mark Steketee less than 26, while WA speedster Lance Morris looks a strong Test prospect who can bowl quicker than 150km/h.

But it’s Boland who is now head-and-shoulders above the rest in the battle to replace any one of Cummins, Starc or Hazlewood. It opens the door to many Test appearances in the future, particularly at the Ashes in England in mid-2023.

“I mean, Boland is the acknowledged No. 4 now. Neser is the No. 5, and Lance ‘The Wild Thing Morris’ is No. 6,” Kerry O’Keeffe said on Sunday.

“So if you’re taking four main fast bowlers to England next year, Boland is inside the four because he’s going to hit the string more than Michael Neser, who is a swing bowler.

“We know the Dukes swing, but they also seam, and that’s why I think Boland is a must for those pitches (in England) that help his type.

“The top three will be there (in England); Cummins, Hazlewood, Starc. But what a back-up Australia has with the Ashes around the corner with Scotty B.”

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Boland is a humble, understated character who is only just coming to grips with his meteoric rise late in his career.

But the penny is starting to drop that his Test career could only just be getting started, fitness permitting.

Asked on Fox Cricket about the prospect of going to India and the Ashes, Boland said: “Yeah, (it’s) something I’m looking forward to.

“Hopefully I keep putting my best foot forward and keeping taking some wickets to get on those tours.

“I’d love to be able to go over and play in England. I’ve only played some T20 cricket over there so I’d love to get over there and try my skills out with the red ball.”

WARNER ‘IN TROUBLE’ AFTER ANOTHER FAILURE

It’s hard to find a negative for the Australians in the two-Test series, but one certainly exists in the performance of veteran opener David Warner.

Australia’s bowlers ran riot, the batters helped themselves to mountains of runs, but Warner was kept quiet, averaging just 25.50 from four innings.

One poor two-Test series is not usually cause for concern, but the fact is Warner still hasn’t scored a Test century in nearly three years – and doesn’t look any closer to doing so.

Since making his last Test century in January 2020, the left-hander’s average is 28.12, with only four half-centuries in 25 innings.

Adding to the dilemma is that Warner no longer looks simply out of luck, but there are instead genuine concerns about his footwork.

Warner has always feasted on full and wide deliveries early in his innings, but without the correct footwork he’s started reaching, throwing off his balance, leading to more false strokes.

Up next is a red-hot South Africa attack with Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi all in Australia ready to have a crack.

“Rabada and company await. They know there’s vulnerability,” O’Keeffe said.

The Australian great said he hopes Warner will find his feet soon but, if he doesn’t, he can no longer be considered a lock at Test level.

“I think he’s potentially in trouble,” he said.

“His feet aren’t moving.

“I know his fitness levels are Olympic-like but, if your feet betray you, you’re always searching away from your body. You lose your compactness. The bottom hand takes control of the bat face. He’s chopping on, whereas in the past his hands always found the open face of the bat and the ball. Now we’re seeing a motion across the line of the ball away from his body.”

Asked about if Warner’s spot is under threat, he added: “He needs runs, without question. Australia keep winning — that’s the thing — but the moment a loss occurs, if Dave’s not contributing, hard questions are going to be asked.

“If you’re in the top six in Test cricket, you’ve got to be averaging at least 36 over an extended period. Since Dave scored his last Test century three years ago, he’s averaged 28.

“So that’s unders … you will be scrutinised.”

Nonetheless, O’Keeffe said that all the discussion will immediately vanish if Warner can just produce one big score, three years in the making.

If not, then it seems likely Warner will make good on his suggestion earlier in the summer that he could be in the final 12 months of his Test career.

GREEN SET UP FOR FAILURE

Does Cameron Green enter the South African Test series underdone?

The young West Australian has faced just 46 deliveries in red-ball cricket since August, hardly adequate preparation for a home Test summer.

Green hasn’t played any Sheffield Shield cricket this season due to his sudden emergence as a white-ball weapon, which dominated headlines ahead of the T20 World Cup.

The 23-year-old replaced David Warner in the squad for September’s T20 tour of India, and after bashing twin fifties in the sub-continent he was retained for bilateral series against the West Indies and England.

An untimely injury for reserve wicketkeeper Josh Inglis meant that Green was rushed into Australia’s T20 World Cup squad on the eve of the tournament, flying around the country without playing until the final Super 12 match against Afghanistan, when the hosts had essentially already been knocked out.

While this experience would have been rewarding for Green to an extent, it meant he entered the Test series against India without any red-ball cricket under his belt.

Would it have been more beneficial for Green to play a couple of Sheffield Shield matches for Western Australia instead?

And to make matters worse, thanks to an impeccable batting display from Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith, he didn’t even get an opportunity to bat in front of friends and family during last week’s Perth Test.

After two months of serving as a pinch-hitter in the 20-over format, Green was made to wait more than 299 overs on the sidelines.

“You had a bit of pad rash, didn’t you?” teammate Nathan Lyon jeered during the Adelaide Test.

“A long time switched on.”

When Green finally did walk out to bat in Adelaide, he looked completely at sea against the West Indies paceman, scratching his way towards 9 (42) before chopping onto the stumps.

In the second innings, with Australia on the verge of a declaration, Green was tasked with smacking quick runs, back in the sheds for 5 after miscuing a lofted drive.

Now, attention quickly shifts towards the Test series against South Africa, which gets underway on Saturday.

Green will be tasked with combating the fierce Proteas pace attack with hardly any time at the crease in red-ball cricket this summer.

Amid all the hype of Green being the next star of T20 cricket, national selectors have denied him the chance to adequately prepare for the Test summer.

SEE YOU IN 12 MONTHS, WINDIES

There’s no need to sugar coat it. The West Indies were awful in this series.

However, it’s important to acknowledge that the team suffered unbelievably bad luck with injuries over its course.

Veteran Kemar Roach, exciting young gun Jayden Seales, all-rounder Kyle Mayers, and experienced batter Nkrumah Bonner all went down before the second Test, while Raymond Reifer flew home after an injury against the Prime Minister’s XI last month.

Marquino Mindley was hurriedly flown over from Jamaica to Adelaide – and he bowled just two overs before he, too, went off injured.

And all those injuries say nothing of how hard it has been for the West Indies to mount a Test resurgence following years of disharmony, and a loss of collective identity between the island nations.

But in purely cricketing terms, the West Indies left a lot to be desired, from tired bowling plans and flat fielding to a lack of discipline with the bat.

The West Indies might not have had the skillset present to bowl a 145km/h inswinger through the gate, or elegantly sweep Nathan Lyon to the boundary, but it should be said that Australia out-fielded and out-thought its opponents, too.

Meanwhile, West Indies’ middle-order was shot with Shamarh Brooks, Jason Holder, Jermaine Blackwood and Devon Thomas all averaging between 10 and 20.

West Indies legend Brian Lara was bemused during the second Test, saying on Triple M: “Check the scores (of the middle order) and then check the scores of seven to nine, and you would realise the West Indies would literally maybe have to bat the wrong batting order.

“Roston Chase, Joshua Da Silva and we saw Alzarri Joseph as well, all putting up a fight.

“The openers laid a foundation, and nothing came from that number three, four and five positions.”

What will be harrowing for the West Indies now is that they have to do it all over again next summer.

The Caribbean side returns to these shores for another two-Test series having just suffered its heaviest-ever loss in terms of runs; 419.

Their 2-0 humbling in Perth and Adelaide simply must not be in vain and lessons need to be learnt before they return.