Mentality at No 3 is to attack from the 1st ball, says Marsh
NEW DELHI: Since his unbeaten 77 against New Zealand in the 2021 T20 World Cup final as Australia cantered to their first T20 title, Mitchell Marsh has moved from being an injury-prone talent waiting to fulfil his potential to a bonafide match-winner.
His numbers in this year’s IPL are testimony to that. After playing for four different franchises in 12 years – he made his IPL debut for Deccan Chargers as an 18-year-old in 2010–Marsh is finally hitting his stride for Delhi Capitals. He began the 2022 edition under an injury cloud after a hip flexor problem had ruled him out of Australia’s white-ball series against Pakistan, resulting in him having to wait until Capitals’ fifth game for a start. Marsh played just one game before Covid kept him out for another two matches. A younger Marsh may have done something daft in the circumstances. At the start of the 2019-20 Australian summer for instance, he suffered a broken right hand after punching the dressing room wall after dismissal in a domestic game and was out for six weeks. But he seems to have learned from those hard knocks. Batting at No 3–a role that Marsh, 30, has been playing for Australia in T20IS over the past 12 months–he has scored 63 and 89 in his last two matches, both convincing wins for Delhi. In seven games, he has aggregated 251 runs at an average of 35.85 and strike rate of 133.51.
“It’s been a lot of fun to bat at No 3 for sure,” said Marsh during a Zoom interview on Thursday. “I have batted near the top of the order at times for Perth Scorchers, but it was still mainly at No 4 and 5. As a T20 batter, you always want an opportunity at some stage to bat at the top and face as many balls as you can. Batting in the powerplay has allowed me to go out and take the game on from ball one. That’s been my mentality for this whole period. Hopefully, I can stay consistent.”
According to Marsh, the role clarity that he has at Capitals stands out in comparison to previous IPL stints. “At previous franchises, I probably have never had a good run. There have been lots of times where I have foregone the IPL to focus on playing cricket for Australia. At Capitals, knowing that I was going to bat at No 3 as soon as I was available and understanding that I have a really important role allows me to be clear in what I am trying to do.”
It perhaps also helps that Capitals have Ricky Ponting at the helm. Like many in the Australian cricketing fraternity, Ponting has been a big backer of Marsh’s all-round ability ever since his international debut in 2011. “Ricky has given me a lot of confidence. He has told me that No 3 is my spot. You can then just focus on sticking to your routines. He picks up little things that other people don’t see,” said Marsh.
False dawns
While Marsh is now delivering consistently, what may keep his well-wishers on tenterhooks is the many false dawns his career has had. “I have continually strived to improve. For different people, it takes different amounts of time. As a cricketer, you fail a lot. It’s how you deal with those failures that can define who you are. I have learned a lot from my past failures. As you get a bit older, you see cricketers get to a certain age and become a lot more consistent. Hopefully that is the case for me,” he said.
The competition for places in the Australian team should also spur Marsh on. With all-rounder Marcus Stoinis (he played for Delhi Capitals till 2021) doing well albeit in a different role lower down the order, Marsh, much as he tries to play down the competition, knows that he has to keep performing at No. 3.
“I see zero competition between us. We have become great mates. There is room for both of us in any team we play in. Who knows? Delhi might get him back next year,” he said.
Such camaraderie should hold Australia in good stead when they defend the T20 World Cup at home in October-november. “Going into the last World Cup, no one really gave us a chance in those conditions. I don’t want to label us as favourites. It’s about playing the best cricket at the right time. We obviously love playing in Australia. Hopefully it continues.”
But before that, Marsh is equally keen to leave his mark in the IPL by helping Delhi Capitals possibly go all the way in search of their maiden title.