Australia stars find sweet spot ahead of Ashes
Several key members of Australia’s Ashes squad have sent strong reminders of their form in the latest round of Sheffield Shield matches.
With the Ashes set to commence in under ten days, plenty of Aussies have found rhythm heading into the all-important rivalry, in the race for the ICC World Test Championship Mace.
From Steve Smith’s lone resistance in Sydney to Cameron Green’s lively spells in Perth, the domestic stage doubled as the perfect Ashes warm-up.
Smith, Green, Scott Boland, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and a host of other stars named in Australia's Ashes squad returned with impressive numbers in their respective outings.
At the SCG, Smith, who was named as Australia's captain in the first Test, was a class apart in a struggling New South Wales batting line-up. While the home side were bundled out for 128 against Victoria, Smith played with trademark control and calmness to stand out on a difficult surface, scoring a half-century.
Smith’s composed knock of 57 off 89 drew appreciation from spin wizard and teammate Nathan Lyon, who grabbed four wickets for himself.
“Smithy is Smithy, isn’t he", Lyon was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo.
“He trusted his defence and allowed himself time to get in the game.
"He would have faced close to 100 balls. In my eyes, if you allow yourself to get in and face as many balls as you can, that’s when you give yourself the opportunity to score runs.”
Best of Steve Smith in the field
Best of Steve Smith in the field.
Sam Elliott, who represented Australia A against India A last month, took a career-best 5 for 26 in his first Shield appearance of the season, and for the bowler, the day carried a touch of disbelief in the form of bowling to Australia great Smith.
“It’s a bit surreal, to be honest,” he said after bowling to Smith for the first time.
“The cricket nuffy in me sort of pinched myself a little bit… you watch him play for Australia growing up and see all those innings that he plays. I mean, today, his bat looked like it was five times wider than everyone else.”
On the opposite end for Victoria, Scott Boland once again showcased his consistency with the ball by striking twice and removing opener Sam Konstas - who missed out on the Ashes squad for the first Test - for the sixth time in the competition.
Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood had little rest between innings for New South Wales, but both bowlers got valuable overs under their belts ahead of the all-important home Ashes as Starc returned with four crucial wickets.
Meanwhile in Perth, Cameron Green marked his return to full bowling duties with two fiery spells for Western Australia against Queensland.
Green moved the ball both ways and regularly clocked up 135-140 kph in his eight-over burst, claiming the opening wicket of Queenslad batter Angus Lovell and troubling the batters with a mix of sharp bouncers and full-length deliveries.
Queensland’s captain Marnus Labuschagne added a fluent fifty to his name as well in the contest.
The first Ashes Test begins on Friday, November 21 in Perth.