Australian speedster Josh Hazlewood has insisted that cricket is cricket whether you’re playing white-ball or red-ball while reckoning “one big day” of bowling with the red-ball or featuring in a tour game will be enough for him to prepare for the much-anticipated Test series against India.
Australia is scheduled to host India for three ODIs starting on November 27, followed by as many T20Is, which will clash with a three-day tour match against India A from December 6-8 at Drummoyne Oval before the four-match Test series starting on December 17 in Adelaide.
Hazlewood along with his Australian teammates David Warner, Pat Cummins, and Steve Smith couldn’t feature in the Sheffield Shield to prepare for the Tests having been part of the ongoing IPL 2020 in the UAE, but the pacer insisted that “the intensity is there” playing white-ball cricket and he would be ready for the crucial India Tests by bowling some overs with red-ball.
As per cricket.com.au, Hazlewood said: “Cricket is cricket and if you’re playing one-day cricket, T20 cricket, at least the intensity is there and it’s about having those big (training) days. I could probably get away with one big day if that makes sense, where I bowl the best part of 18 or 20 overs in a day and field the whole day. Once you do that, you’re pretty close.”
He further explained, “Three one-dayers in a week is also a very good marker to see where you’re at… you’re bowling 30 overs at international intensity, you’re fielding 150 overs, you’ve got a bit of travel in there as well. It’s pretty close to a Test match but the back-to-back days bowling and taking those 20 wickets is a different story. Certainly, I would love to get some red ball (cricket) in at some stage whether that’s having big days at training or in that tour match, so we’ll see how it pans out.”
Hazlewood also said patience will be the key when he switches to Test cricket, adding; “Coming from a lot of white-ball cricket (where) you’re probably looking for wickets. You’re bowling more of your change-ups, yorkers, (and) you’re not bowling more than 10 overs so you’re trying to make an impact.”
He signed off by saying, “Once you get that red or pink ball in your hand then patience is a big one for me and it’s about building pressure. It’s playing the long game and not getting too impatient with the way I’m bowling, and that’s how my wickets come about… through patience.”
(With PTI Inputs)
