READY FOR REDEMPTION
Australia’s Finch eyeing Test comeback
AUSTRALIA’S one-day skipper Aaron Finch is keen to play Test cricket again after watching the top order fail to fire during the recent Ashes series.
The 32-year-old was dumped after scoring just 97 runs in three Tests as an opener against India last summer, later declaring his chances of padding up again had “probably slipped away.”
But he is reinvigorated and eyeing another chance after David Warner, Marcus Harris and Cameron Bancroft all misfired against England.
Finch said plans to score as many runs as possible in the upcoming domestic Sheffield Shield season to catch the attention of selectors ahead of the home Test series against Pakistan and New Zealand, starting in November.
“For me personally, it’s about probably having one really good crack at trying to get back to the Test team again,” he told SEN sports radio on Wednesday.
Finch, an aggressive short-format specialist who has played just five Tests, is taking inspiration from Matthew Wade, who forced his way back into the Test team by hammering more than 1,000 Shield runs last season.
“I think it’s a credit to himself, but also the hard work he’s done on his technique and the coaches down at Tassie (Tasmania) have done a fantastic job,” he said of Wade, who hit two Ashes hundreds.
BENGALURU: Pakistan head coach Misbah-ul-Haq has requested the support of more cricket-playing nations as the country takes another step towards the revival of international matches on home soil with a limited-overs series against Sri Lanka in Karachi and Lahore.
Major international teams have avoided touring Pakistan since a 2009 militant attack on Sri Lanka’s team bus in Lahore left six security personnel and two civilians dead while six players were injured.
Pakistan have been forced to play most of their “home” matches in the United Arab Emirates, but have hosted teams such as Zimbabwe and West Indies in recent years.
“I think be it Pakistan, or any other country that has faced similar situation, we need to make sure cricket keeps going,” Misbah told reporters ahead of today’s first one-day international against Sri Lanka in Karachi.
“We need to do more, the world cricket needs to do more to make sure that we play series here on regular basis and cricket is not affected.
“We understand that this wasn’t an easy decision... but it is encouraging sign to see Sri Lanka coming here for series.”