Ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah has dismissed Nathan McSweeney three times across four innings, but the Australian opener is hoping to “throw a few more punches” at his Indian nemesis in the third Test, beginning in Brisbane on Saturday.
The 25-year-old had a disappointing start to his international career after being ousted by Bumrah for 10 and zero in the first Test at Perth.
McSweeney, however, made 39 and 10 not out in Adelaide as the hosts made a comeback into the five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy with an emphatic series-levelling 10-wicket victory in the pink-ball Test.
“To get a bowler like Jasprit early in my career, it’s not going to get much tougher than that and I take some confidence from getting through a spell in Adelaide. The more I face, the more comfortable I’ll get against him,” he was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.
Bumrah had taken eight wickets in the Perth Test, before adding four more in Adelaide to emerge as the best Indian bowler on tour so far.
McSweeney, who was handed a debut after the opening spot was left vacant by the retirement of David Warner, described Bumrah as a “unique” bowler.
“Facing him for the first time – he’s quite a unique bowler. He’s obviously world-class and a bit different to most bowlers I’ve faced. [It’s about adapting to his angle and where he delivers on the crease,” said McSweeney, who was one of the Australian batters to train at the National Cricket Centre on Wednesday.
“I got two pretty good balls from him [in Perth], so to try and wear that on the chin and trust what I’ve been doing is going to be good enough.
“He got me again in Adelaide – he’s a great bowler, and really enjoying the experience of trying to work out a game plan on the run against a world-class player. Hopefully, I’ll get better the more I face him and can throw a few more punches here at the Gabba.”
McSweeney shared a 67-run stand with Marnus Labuschagne in the first innings of the day-night Test.
Labuschagne also returned to form with a 64 and McSweeney said watching his senior partner helped him.
“He’s a beauty of a guy. I think what we see on TV when the bowler is bowling the ball, he’s really intense, but in between overs, he’s actually quite calm,” McSweeney said.
“It gives me confidence just realising that we’re all going through the same stuff – I’m (in my) first game, trying to work it out, (and) he’s 50 games in, still trying to tinker and work things out … it’s a very important series, we’re not quite all batting the way we want to, but there’s always room for learning and tinkering, and we haven’t all quite worked it out yet.”
“So that gave me a little bit of confidence – we’re always striving to be better, and I think that’s what makes guys like Steve (Smith) and Marnus really good,” he added.
It was at the Gabba where McSweeney made his first-class debut in Sheffield Shield in 2018, and the opener shared some fond memories.
“I love playing here – the wicket has great bounce. Batting well at the Gabba (is about) leaving well in particular … you can really trust the bounce here, and it’s about not fighting that bounce, and scoring square of the wicket.”
“It’s a ground that if you spend a long time out there, the game can open up and you can actually score quite quickly. So, it’s definitely a new-ball wicket, and if you can get past that, it’s a lovely ground to bat on,” he said.
