'The tail is wagging the dog': Tom Moody calls for selectors to axe Nathan Lyon, step up to the 'hard decisions'

The conjecture around Australia's team for the second Test of the Ashes series has continued, with Tom Moody calling for Nathan Lyon to be dropped.

The veteran bowler barely featured with the ball in Perth and there are also question marks over his fitness heading into the Gabba fixture.

Lyon is the country's greatest-ever off-spinner and is closing in on Glenn McGrath's wicket tally, which would place him behind only Shane Warne all-time.

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However, with favourable seam conditions in the pink-ball Test coinciding with both the potential return of Pat Cummins and changes in the batting order, Lyon could end up being surplus to requirements as the hosts chase a 2-0 series lead over England.

Speaking on 6PR's Wide World of Sports on Monday night, Tom Moody questioned whether the time had come for selectors to make a tough call while conceding the loyalty between the tight-knit playing group has been an issue for some time.

"That's half the problem - I sense that in some cases, the tail is wagging the dog and you don't want that in any high performance environment," he said.

"A few hard decisions need to be made and my personal view is I wouldn't play Lyon.

"I never thought I'd see the day where you don't play a specialist spinner in a Test match in Australia, but with day-night cricket it's hard to get the spinner into the contest.

"The second part to that is, the way England play, it's very hard to get the spinner into the game, because they don't tend to bat for long periods of time.

"Putting that together with the day-night fixture, I think Australia would be better having someone like [Beau] Webster taking Lyon's spot and lengthening the batting order."

The comments from Moody come less than a month after former Australian captain Steve Waugh publicly criticised George Bailey for failing to make tough calls.

While there's plenty of water to go under the bridge before the team is named for the second Test, Webster's ability to bowl part-time spin could also prove handy if required, while Head has shown on more than a few occasions he can take wickets.

The towering Tasmanian could already be in line for a recall anyway, depending on which way the selectors lean when it comes to the opening batting role.

Usman Khawaja is under mounting pressure to retain his spot after Travis Head scored a blistering century at the top of the order, which could see the towering Tasmanian all-rounder in Webster slot back into the No.6 role after missing out in Perth.

"It's really interesting," Moody said.

"Coming into this series, I don't think I've seen an Australian team in such disarray with the uncertainty of what it looks like … we were all over the place.

"Going into the second Test, I think we should be very grateful that England left the door wide open for us to jump back into the contest and we snuck a one-up lead.

"I'd like to think that we need to address the few very obvious issues and that is the Usman Khawaja dilemma - his fitness and also his form. We have brushed over that conversation, purely because there were many other conversations being had.

"The reality is, Usman Khawaja's form over the last few years has been a real concern and his fitness now is an issue and with Travis Head doing well, I think maybe Australia need to consider continuing to open with him - purely for this series and then reset.

"It may well be that this actually suits this opposition, to play Head at the top of the order. If he's happy to do that, to me it's not a bad option because what he did show is that he can counter-attack this bowling attack and get us ahead of the game."

One other option is playing Michael Neser, who is seen as a Gabba specialist and is a more-than handy lower-order batter, averaging 28 in first-class cricket.

A recall for Neser would likely depend on the fitness of Cummins and whether or not the selectors feel the need for Lyon to be included in the XI.

Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland are both likely to retain their spots regardless of who else features in the bowling attack, while Brendan Doggett impressed with the ball on debut and would consider himself unlucky if he was to miss out.

Australia's possible second Test XI

Travis Head, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Cameron Green, Beau Webster, Alex Carey, Michael Neser, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland