Mathew Wade is extremely disappointed on being left out from Australia's squad for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka and claimed that he shall be considered among specialist batsmen, not as a wicketkeeper.
After shifting base from Victoria to Tasmania, Wade has amassed 571 runs at 63.44 in just six Sheffield Shield games this season and is currently leading the run-scoring chart.
The fact that the likes of Marnus Labuschagne (28.22), Matt Renshaw (19.80), Peter Handscomb (45.12) and Joe Burns (47.20) are all part of the Tim Paine led side despite having inferior numbers, hasn't helped Wade's case either.
"Justin Langer shot me an email before the start of the last test(in Sydney versus India) just saying well done on my performances (but) at the moment I’m not probably going to get a look in anytime soon. It’s pretty frustrating. I feel like my form is as good as anyone in the country," Wade told Fox Sports News.
"When Justin first took over he said that weight of runs would be the leverage to get selected, and I feel like I’ve put the runs on the board over a long period of time."
"I’m hoping they’re not just looking at me as a specialist keeper, I hope they are looking at me as a batsman as well. If I have to prove that in Shield cricket, I will. I’ll come up the order and take off the gloves. Hopefully, the communication keeps coming."
Earlier, when Trevor Hohns was asked about Wade's exclusion from the side, the chairman of the selection committee intimated that the left-hander will have to bat higher than No.6 at the domestic level. But intriguingly none of that was informed to Tasmanian Tigers coach Adam Griffiths.
“It was a blessing in disguise that I got to play just as a batter with Tim (Paine) in the team, so it probably showed the selectors that I can play as a specialist batsman," Wade, who doesn't mind batting up the order if that is what is needed for re-inclusion at the highest level, said, "I’m not batting in the top four of five at the moment for Tasmania, but at the moment in the Test team I feel like number 5 or 6, that role would suit me perfectly, so hopefully, they come knocking soon."
"I’m arguably batting on the worst wicket in the country. Granted it is at six, but I feel like I’m in pretty early in most innings. They might want me to come up the order, maybe that’s something that I can look at."
"I understand, as a keeper, it’s probably not going to come there … my Test career is probably done as a wicket-keeper but I feel like my weight of runs as a batsman should be looked at," he signed off.
