By Andrew Wu
It's the black hole in Australian cricket that goes a long way to explaining the predicament the national team now finds itself in.
Former captain Ian Chappell reckons "the system is broken". Others point to changes in the pathway system, the rise of the Indian Premier League and the fewer number of players now plying their trade in England's county competition.
The decline started after Michael Clarke, Mitchell Johnson and Co. departed in quick succession but the seeds were sown a decade earlier when Australia were at their pomp.
A glance through Australia's under-19 teams from 2002-07 gives an indication why the country is in the grip of a batting crisis. Steve Smith and David Warner are the only two batsmen from those years who have forged strong Test careers.
Lean trot: Adam Voges is just one of several Australian batsmen struggling at the moment.Credit: Getty Images
Players such as George Bailey (34), Shaun Marsh (33) and Cameron White (33) are at ages where in previous generations they would be senior players. Bailey and White could even have been Test captains had they kicked on.
Others such as Mark Cosgrove (32), Tim Paine (31), Usman Khawaja (29), Aaron Finch (29), Moises Henriques (29) and Tom Cooper (29) should be in their prime years. Of that group, none have been long-term Test regulars. Some haven't worn the baggy green at all.
Several theories have been put forward for Australia's fall from grace. Many players believe the age restrictions placed on the old second XI state competition, now called the Futures League, has had a negative impact.
They said it turned what was a strong battleground for fringe state types and rising stars into a glorified under-age competition where youngsters no longer had the chance to cut their teeth against hardened professionals.
Cricket Australia said age restrictions were introduced to fast-track young players into the state system so they did not have to wait an average of four years to break in.
Another widely held belief pins the blame on the IPL. Whereas many Australian players in the past used to fine-tune their game on England's seaming wickets in county cricket, they are now earning good money slogging balls out of the ground.
"The batting to me is an area, where something has got to be done. The system is broken at the moment," Chappell said on the Macquarie Radio Network.
CA's head of team performance, Pat Howard, disagrees, pointing to the A series between Australia and South Africa during the winter where the hosts beat a team that included Vernon Philander, Temba Bavuma, Dean Elgar and Stephen Cook.
"Funnily enough his brother [Greg Chappell] is the national talent manager and he's very positive about the talent that's coming through," Howard said.
Changes to the eligibility criteria for overseas players to turn out in county cricket have also made it more difficult for Australians to play. CA has also sent players over, and its program for the A team now includes tours to England.
"I think the magic bullet of 'they play there and they will be better' is not always the case," Howard said.
"Usman and Joe [Burns] have played there, so has Adam Voges, that's three of our top five have been playing over there in the last couple of years and David Warner and Steve Smith haven't and their records are probably better.
"I try to look for the correlation between the more time you spend over there and the success, but, I don't think it hurts."
Another more sobering theory is the current batch of players just aren't good enough. Chappell wants to see selectors have the courage to back their instincts over numbers.
"Most of the batsmen you want them to score runs in first-class cricket, a lot of runs. Every now and then you have to see someone and think 'I think this kid can really play'," Chappell said.
"He hasn't made a lot of runs in first-class cricket but let's find out if he can play."