Champion Aussie quick Brett Lee says Josh Hazlewood should get the nod ahead of Scott Boland for the Boxing Day Test against South Africa – but only if fully fit.
Boland faces the prospect of missing out on the second Test despite starring with the ball again after his re-call to the team.
The impending return of injured quick Hazlewood could mean Boland, who took an unforgettable 6-7 on Test debut at the MCG last year and now has 28 wickets at an average of 10, could be left out.
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Hazlewood has missed Australia’s past two Tests after suffering a minor side strain, with Boland pouncing on his opportunity with three wickets in one over against the West Indies then four scalps against South Africa, all while conceding just 1.9 runs per over.
Speaking on Fox Cricket, Lee said Aussie selectors had to pick Hazlewood if available.
But the 2008 Allan Border Medallist warned against rushing Hazelwood back into the side considering the nature of his injury.
“If Josh Hazlewood is fully fit, I‘d be going Josh Hazlewood,” Lee told Fox Cricket on Wednesday night.
Scott Boland takes THREE in an over! | 01:26
“Nothing against Boland, he‘s a brilliant bowler and gets wickets for fun – but 58 Tests under his belt and 217 wickets in the Hoff.
“He’s got to be fully fit though. Coming back from a side strain is really tough. When you think you’re ready, you’ve got to give an extra week.
“I think what Cricket Australia might do is rest him in Melbourne and play him up in Sydney.”
Star T20 all-rounder Dan Christian said selector George Bailey, coach Andrew McDonald and skipper Pat Cummins faced a tough conundrum.
“Scott Boland has been absolutely fantastic in the last 12 months. He made his debut last year on Boxing Day and was man of the match there. He‘s gone on to take 25 wickets at 10.3 in his first five Tests,” Christian told Fox Cricket.
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“It’d be a really tough decision to leave him out I think, but Josh Hazlewood has got some credits in the bank.
“I know George Bailey was really big last year on bringing Scott Boland in for that MCG Test, so it’ll be interesting to see if he stays in.”
Aussie star Steve Smith said he was glad he didn’t have to make the call.
“I think it’d be tough on Scotty if he gets left out for sure,” he said,
“Boxing Day last year he was just incredible and he’s been incredible since he started.
“He’s got that ability to hit the stumps from probably a shorter length than a lot of the other bowlers being a little bit shorter and a bit skiddier, so brings in both sides of the bat, whereas Josh is probably a little bit more bouncy and brings in the outside edge more than the inside edge.
“They’re both different and I think that’s the beauty with our attack at the moment. Everyone bowls slightly different, but they’re all really good at what they do.”
Boland 12 months ago became a fan favourite, cementing his name in Ashes folklore after taking 6-7 against England.
Speaking on Fox Cricket’s The Follow-On podcast, former Australian spinner Kerry O’Keeffe said he was “a big fan” of Boland.
“That metronomic, repeatable action – there‘s nothing much can go wrong. He just bowls the rock into a rectangle on the perfect line and length to ask difficult questions of batters,” O’Keeffe told The Follow-On podcast.
“As we saw in that brilliant over in Adelaide, if the batter gives him a wrong answer, he punishes them. That‘s his great gift, you’ve got to get it right (as a batter) with Scott Boland. He just consistently hits the seam and goes either way
“Batters are always guessing if it‘s leaving them or coming back into them. To me, it’s 135km/hr leg breaks and wrong’uns. When we on Fox Cricket replay the delivery, you see how skilful he is at making the ball go one way or the other way off the seam. It’s a gift.”
— with NCA Newswire
