A far greater issue than standing players down for not doing “homework” surrounds the Australian cricket side as it enters tomorrow’s third Test against India at Mohali.

Sure, this tactic may have caught cricket fans and media back here off guard, let alone the four players who suffered the consequences (Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson, Usman Khawaja and James Pattinson), but at the end of the day this was a move orchestrated to try and instil law, order and discipline in the Australian squad by coach Mickey Arthur and skipper Michael Clarke.

Since the failure by the aforementioned players to provide feedback on how the Aussie squad can improve, reports have flooded back from India detailing various team members’ too-casual approach to team sessions and appointments and the wearing of “wrong” training gear. This latest “homework” episode was no doubt the tipping point for Arthur and Clarke, who know the only way their side is going to claw back any respectability in their pear-shaped campaign against India is a one-in, all-in approach, which needs strong leadership.

Their decision to stand down their most effective pace bowler was an interesting one, but Pattinson was a scalp team management needed to get their message across.