Melbourne [Australia], November 5 (ANI): The focus of the second four-day match at the MCG is firmly on the final auditions for Australia’s vacant batting position. However, fast bowler Scott Boland is eager to seize his chance to impress by targeting India Test squad member KL Rahul, who has joined India A for some much-needed match practice for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
KL Rahul, who played in the first Test against New Zealand but was dropped when Shubman Gill regained fitness, travelled to Australia along with reserve wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel ahead of the main Test squad. Rahul, who has struggled in Australia with an average of 20.77 from five Tests despite a century at the SCG in 2015, is aiming to make a case for selection in the first Test in Perth, especially if Rohit Sharma is unavailable due to personal reasons.
“I was lucky to bowl to him (KL Rahul) in a Test over in India a couple of years ago but it’ll be nice to play against him in our backyard,” Scott Boland said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
“He’s a world-class player but someone I think we can get on top of pretty early and hopefully stay on top of him for the majority of the summer,” Boland added.
Scott Boland, eyeing an opportunity to cement his place, is aware of the potential impact he could make against Rahul. Reflecting on India’s recent 3-0 series loss to New Zealand, Boland cautioned against reading too much into the results, noting the significant contributions from New Zealand’s bowlers in the series.
“There’s so much more bounce here, more seam,” Boland said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
“The way they’ll structure their team will be completely different to what you see over in India,” he said.
Most of India’s Test squad will not have a complete match in Australia before the first Test, due to a shift from an intra-squad game with India A to match simulations for more flexible preparation.
Boland, expected to be a reserve quick in Australia’s Test squad, is preparing for potential opportunities this season. He noted that last season’s uninterrupted run of Australia’s top three fast bowlers–Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood–was unusual, suggesting that reinforcements will likely be needed.
With an impressive Test average of 12.21 at home, Boland had anticipated a chance to play last season, only to be held back by the consistent performance and durability of Cummins, Starc, and Hazlewood, aided by matches rarely going the full five days. Recovering from an early-season heel injury that cut short his county stint with Durham, Boland managed to bowl 28 overs in the Sheffield Shield against New South Wales. He mentioned facing some restrictions in that game but expects no limitations while playing for Australia A.
“It felt like a long six months between games,” he said. “Remember being out on the ground in the Shield game and was just really happy to be back playing cricket. Haven’t had too many breaks for injury throughout my career so was different going through all the rehab,” he said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
“Luckily [we’ve] got really good physios and support staff at Cricket Victoria. So lucky I could lean on them, because few times I was like, ‘[are] any of these things getting better? But it’s all come good now and feeling really good,” he added.
As the final auditions unfold at the MCG, both Boland and Rahul have their eyes set on making significant impacts, each aiming to secure their spots in their respective national teams. (ANI)
