The more I face, the more comfortable I’ll get against Bumrah- Nathan McSweeney (X/Twitter)
Jasprit Bumrah is one bowler, who has troubled the Australian batters consistently. Even though India lost the second Test in Adelaide, the Indian pacer looked in fine touch claiming four wickets. He was also the linchpin behind India’s Perth win as the right-arm pacer picked eight wickets in both innings combined.
Particularly, he had troubled the Australian openers, Usman Khawaja and Nathan McSweeney. The young McSweeney, who will be playing his only third Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT 2024-25) after making his debut with the Perth Test has exuded confidence in tackling the Bumrah factor. He also admitted that facing the star India pacer so early in his career was the toughest challenge he could imagine.
“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,” said McSweeney as quoted by ESPN.
“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. 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 added.
He got me again in Adelaide, he’s a great bowler: McSweeney
Notably, Jasprit Bumrah was on song in Adelaide too as he picked up Usman Khawaja. McSweeney looked in good touch scoring 30-odd runs but the India vice-captain had other plans and made the youngster nick one to the wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.
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“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 concluded.