AUS vs IND, 4th Test: Boland says Australia still holds the aces despite a resolute performance by India on third day
AUS vs IND, 4th Test: Boland says Australia still holds the aces despite a resolute performance by India on third day
If there is a local hero that the ‘G’, as the Melbourne Cricket Ground is referred to in urban lore, adores, it has to be Scott Boland. Whenever he turns up, the G breaks into a deafening roar.
A representative of Australia’s indigenous community, Boland offers hope to a multi-ethnic nation. Being the industrious pacer, he also steps up when Josh Hazlewood or the others get injured. After a long Saturday on the ground with India mounting a stirring resistance through Nitish Kumar and Washington Sundar in the fourth Test, Boland met the media.
Asked about the pitch, a surface he knows closely, Boland said: “It started off with a fair bit of nip in it. There is still a little bit of nip there, but not as consistent as I would like as a bowler, but it’s a good Test wicket.”
Queried about Nitish, the day’s hero, Boland replied: “He is playing really nicely. Coming down in the lower order, he is trying to put the pressure back on us. A young guy from India who has come through and strikes the ball really well.”
Boland, though, believed that Australia held the aces: “We are leading by 116 runs and in a pretty strong position. It could have been better, but that’s how Tests are, ebbs and flows. Hopefully, tomorrow, we get that wicket and then put on a nice lead.”
The tall seamer also clarified that Mitchell Starc, nursing an injury, is fine: “He is okay. He has a bit of a niggle somewhere in his back. But he came out and was bowling around 140kmph. He is tough and can play through a lot of pain.”
