New Delhi: Ahead of his potential return to Test cricket, Australias left-arm spin all-rounder Ashton Agar said batting at No. 7 in the longest format of the game gives him the feeling of having real pride in his wicket, which he likes.
Agar made his debut in Tests for Australia in 2013, making a famous 98 with the bat against England in the Ashes and last played a longer format match in 2017, apart from 63 first-class appearances bringing three centuries.
Now, with injuries to Mitchell Starc and Cameron Green, Agar is back in an Australian Test team and could partner with premier off-spinner Nathan Lyon on a spin-friendly pitch at the SCG.
“I often bat seven for WA. I’ve batted six for WA and made a hundred there before. It’s a really important spot and I like that feeling of having real pride on your wicket. It really switches you on and with that extra little bit of hype with it being a Test match and against an extremely good bowling attack, there is a lot of responsibility there,” Agar was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au on Saturday.
The potential pairing of Lyon and Agar may be a good look-in for Australia ahead of the tour of India next year in February-March. Agar’s return puts him in a pole position to be the second spinner on the tour of India and is keen to strike a spin-bowling partnership with Lyon.
“We’re very different bowlers, I probably rely a lot more on variations and changes of pace where Gazza (Lyon) has the best off-break in the world, it’s amazing how many revs he puts on the ball and his ability to hit one spot on the wicket is remarkable,” Agar said.
“That is bloody hard to do, so for me, bowling with him is not trying to bowl like him, it’s trying to complement him and work as a partnership, but we have to do that in our own ways if that opportunity was to arise.
In the last two years, Agar has only played three first-class matches fetching him only seven wickets, majorly due to him being a regular in Australia’s white-ball matches. But he is still keen to play Test cricket.
“It certainly helps me enjoy my bowling a lot more, I don’t like trying to bowl six dot balls in a row – I actually find that not overly exciting… I’ve never really bowled that way over my career.”
“I obviously still want to play Test cricket. I have played a lot of white-ball cricket recently and after having played a Shield and the Prime Minster’s XI game, you sort of forget how long you enjoy the longer form of the game. I hadn’t played it in so long.”
–IANS