Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh has made the most of the self-inflicted setback to rediscover his white-ball flair, returning to the national limited-overs squad for the upcoming South Africa series starting later this week at the expense of his Test hopes.
Marsh has put himself on the sidelines for two months after he broke his right hand and tore ligaments in his wrist when he punched a dressing room wall after getting out for 53 on day four of a Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania.
The 28-year-old has made the most of his madness in the WACA changerooms – which had ruined his Test hopes for the summer in fine-tune his batting skills in the white-ball cricket, as he admitted that the limited-overs game had been a low priority in recent years to solely focus on nailing down a cherished Test spot in the Australian Test set-up.
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Marsh told cricket.com.au in Johannesburg, “I just practiced hitting sixes. Injuries in sport happen, but obviously I did this one to myself, so it was a little bit harder to take.”
The all-rounder further explained, “But the positive was it gave me a real chance to focus on T20 cricket … it was nice to get back and play white-ball cricket for an extended period. In the last four years, my sole focus has been to wear my Baggy Green as much as I can. T20 cricket and one-day cricket got put on the backburner a bit for me when it came to my training.
So, as soon as my hand was alright to hit balls, I worked with (long-time batting coach) Scott Meuleman just to try and find my swing again and clear the fence. It was actually a great way to train; it was a lot of fun and refreshing. I went into the Big Bash with a lot of confidence that I could clear the fence when I needed to.”
Meanwhile, March batted brilliantly for Perth Scorchers in the BBL 09 and he is ready to take up the finishers’ role in the Australia side, as they have already a star-studded top-order and they are looking for the hard-hitter at tail-ender keeping in mind upcoming T20 Word Cup 2020 at home later this year.
The all-rounder said, “It's been my role throughout my whole career, making sure I'm in at the end. I learned a lot of good lessons during the Big Bash about being there at the end and cashing in. I'm sure that will be my role for Australia and hopefully, I can go out there and execute.”
Marsh signed off by saying, “I'm certainly confident I can do it. The game situation obviously dictates if you can give yourself a couple of balls to get in. It's all mental; if the team requires me to get out there and hit a six off my first ball, I'll definitely try.”
(With cricket.com.au Inputs)
