All the talk is almost over with George Bailey and the selectors set to name their Australian squad to take on the West Indies in a two-match series that starts on Wednesday, January 17.
Ever since David Warner announced his intention to step away from the Test arena seven months ago – a feat he achieved with a memorable last knock in Sydney against Pakistan – debate has raged around who will replace the opener at the top of the order.
Cameron Bancroft and Marcus Harris have been touted to break into the team, while a Steve Smith-shaped spanner was thrown into the works last week when h declared his interest in the role.
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According to a report from The Sydney Morning Herald, the former skipper emerged as a front runner along with Cameron Green, while The Herald Sun later reported Green would return to the side further down the order.
Ahead of the Australian team announcement, The Sporting News breaks down the contenders to open the batting alongside Usman Khawaja.
Ranking the candidates to replace David Warner as Australia's next Test opener
1. Steve Smith
The speculation around moving Steve Smith up the order ramped up in the final days of Australia’s third and final match against Pakistan last week.
It quickly gathered pace from being a suggestion from Shane Watson into a full-fledged conversation around if the challenge would reinvigorate the batsman as he enters into the twilight of his career.
When Smith revealed his interest in the role, discussion then flipped to whether his move up the order could also bring Cameron Green back into the side.
“In the last 30 years, I think there has been 30-odd openers, and 50 per cent of them have come from a non-traditional opening background,” Aussie coach Andrew McDonald recently told ABC Radio.
“If that’s anything to go by, there is the potential to be able to rejig your order.”
Smith has struggled for fluency of late, recording a strike rate of just 40 during the series clean sweep against Pakistan.
Yet despite never opening the batting at Test level, teammate Marnus Labuschagne has backed him to make the move work.
"He averages 58 at five, 61 at four and 67 at three, so it seems like the higher he goes the more he averages," he jokingly told SEN Radio.
2. Cameron Green
Green has lost his place as the side's allrounder to Mitch Marsh, yet his future inclusion in the side seems to be a foregone conclusion.
The 24-year-old has already notched over 1,000 Test runs in 24 appearances at an average of 33.59.
"When you sit back 12 months ago and Cameron was locked away in that number six position, no doubt the conversation changes when the personnel changes," McDonald said.
"But I think Cameron Green is potentially underrated in the way that he can play Test level as well.
"We know that he can play the high and the low. He's arguably in our best line up depending on which way we go."
Although whether he follows in the footsteps of the likes of Watson, who started in the middle order before being elevated to an opener, or breaks in through other means remains to be seen.
3. Matt Renshaw
Matt Renshaw is the youngest of the candidates, but former Test great Matthew Hayden has argued that this longevity actually gives him the edge ahead of Bancroft and Harris.
"I feel like a left-handed opener in Renshaw is that person with age on his side," Hayden told The Sydney Morning Herald.
"He maybe doesn’t have the performances of Bancroft at first-class cricket but in many ways, I just feel like he has shown what he can potentially do, and he has that longevity."
Renshaw has been outscored by his fellow opener Bancroft in three successive Shield seasons, with his best average coming in the 2022/2023 campaign when he averaged 51.66.
The Queenslander, who has 14 Test caps for his country to date, has experienced a rollercoaster career which has seen him drop in and out of the national side as well as move around the batting order in Shield.
However, Hayden claimed Renshaw's inclusion would be a positive step towards stabilising the side for years to come.
"When you look at the success over the last two years of this Test team, it’s been based on a very solid foundation," Hayden added.
"It’s been such a key structure – that number one to four set in stone has been gold for Cricket Australia."
4. Cameron Bancroft
The steady hand of Bancroft makes sense on a purely form-related argument with the 31-year-old topping the scoring charts in Shield for the second straight year.
The West Australian declared he was “desperate” to play for his country once again after his Test career grinded to a halt after ‘Sandpapergate’ in 2018.
“It’s something that I really want,” Bancroft said on the eve of the team announcement.
“I feel like I am physically, mentally and emotionally ready to take that opportunity.
“The past has been a great ground for me to learn things about myself and I feel like I definitely owe it to my country to put those lessons into play.”
The opener has averaged 56.88 in Shield cricket so far this year after racking up 512 runs in another stellar campaign to outperform fellow contenders Harris and Renshaw.
“Cricket means the world to me, and I’ve put my heart and soul into developing my game as an opening batter,” Bancroft added.
“Some players have been able to transition and go to the top and do really well, but I feel like it’s probably a specialist position.”
However, the most recent reports ahead of Wednesday's selection announcement appears like the Aussies are leaning towards either Smith or Green for the role.
5. Marcus Harris
Marcus Harris was Warner's personal pick to take the mantle as one of Australia's Test openers when asked about the impending selection dilemma recently.
"It is obviously up to the selectors but from my position, I feel like the person who has worked their backside off and has been there for a while in the background is Harris," Warner said.
"He’s always been the person who’s next in line.
"So, if the selectors show their faith in him, then I’m sure he’ll come out and play the way he does. You know, he’s not too dissimilar to me - if he sees it in his areas, he goes for it and plays his shots."
Although during his limited Test career to date, the left-hander has an average of 25.29, while Harris has endured a tough Shield campaign so far where he has made just 282 runs in nine innings.
When is the Australian Test team announced for West Indies series?
The Australian team announcement is scheduled for 11am AEDT on Wednesday, January 10.
This will give the side a week to prepare for the start of their two-match Test series against the West Indies that begins in Adelaide before finishing at The Gabba in Brisbane with a day/night Test.