Scott Boland of Australia looks on during day two of the Men’s Fourth Test Match in the series between Australia and India at Melbourne Cricket Ground on December 27, 2024, in Melbourne, Australia.
| Photo Credit: Getty Images
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 (December 28, 2024) 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. 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.”
Published – December 28, 2024 02:29 pm IST