Australian legend Allan Border believes paceman Scott Boland looms as the “perfect” inclusion for the pink ball Test, suggesting the reliable Victorian will be a “real handful” for the West Indies under lights.
Boland has been called up to the Australian starting XI for the first time since January after skipper Pat Cummins was ruled out due to a quad injury.
The 33-year-old became a household name last summer, taking 6-7 on Test debut against England in front of his home fans at the MCG and finishing with 18 scalps from three Ashes matches. However Boland has been stuck behind Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood in the Aussie bowling pecking order this year, missing out on selection for matches against Pakistan and Sri Lanka then the first Test against the West Indies in Perth.
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Speaking on Fox Cricket’s The Follow-On podcast, Border said losing Cummins was a “big blow” for Australia, but added the inclusion of Boland meant the bowling attack would “not be weakened too much” as the Victorian is an ideal ‘plug in and play’ bowler.
“I think he played that role fantastically well last year. We’d all wondered where he‘d been, but he’s always been there and thereabouts,” Border told The Follow-On podcast.
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“He’s just one of those unfashionable type guys and he doesn’t sort of push his own barrow at all. He just does his job.
“From a captaincy point of view, it’s perfect. You just dial him in and he’s going to be relentless on that line and length and hitting the top of off stump. They’re all the things you talk about doing but hard to execute 100 per cent – well Scotty Boland showed last year he just about had the ball on a string and was absolutely fantastic.”
Boland boasts an extraordinary Test bowling average of 9.55 after his stunning three-match stint last summer.
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Border said Boland was the type of paceman that could thrive with the pink Kookaburra in the day-night conditions.
“Against a side like the West Indies where they‘ve got a young batting line-up that’s a bit inexperienced, most of them have a bit more of a Twenty20 type background and like to play their shots and get on with it. So someone who bowls that relentless line and length with that pink ball under lights, he’s going to be great for the Aussie boys and hard work for the West Indies,” Border said.
“We’ve seen the pink ball do a few things at night – that brand-new ball in the evenings is not a pleasant experience, just watching on anyway, when you’ve got quality bowlers with a bit of pace and the ball does swing around a little bit more than it seemed to do during the day.
“Scotty Boland will be perfect. If he finds himself in those situations where he‘s bowling at eight o’clock at night with a brand-new pink ball, he’ll be a real handful.”
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Australian teammate Nathan Lyon said Boland’s confidence was high at the moment.
“His skill set has always been at the top in my eyes. He hits me in the pad for fun when I play him in state cricket,” Lyon told reporters on Tuesday.
“But what I see in Scott now is his confidence level has gone up a little.”
