Still got lot of cricket left in me, states James Pattinson
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James Pattinson, who was a part of the Aussie squad that retained the Ashes in England earlier this year, believes that he still has a lot of cricket left in him. After a three-year hiatus from Test cricket, Pattinson donned the Aussie jersey in the Ashes and now hopes to play Tests more frequently.
After suffering an array of constant injury setbacks, James Pattinson underwent a life-changing major back surgery in 2017 in a last-ditch attempt to salvage his Test career. The surgery, otherwise known as the 'Shane Bond back surgery', took Pattinson almost 10 months to heal and the speedster did all he could to ensure that he gets back into shape. Eventually, his dream was realized in August this year as after a three-year hiatus, Pattinson made a comeback to the Aussie national team by being a part of their successful Ashes campaign in England.
The Victorian, who is now gearing himself up for the home season, admitted that it was a surreal feeling for him to now wake up and feel injury-free and just be bowling without pain. Pattinson, who is now 29 and fit, believes that he has plenty of cricket left in him.
"To rock up, have four days off and bowl again – I was like, 'what's this all about?' It's things like that where you pinch yourself and go, 'this is good, things are starting to line up a little bit'. Still not being 30 yet, I've still got a lot of cricket left," Pattinson told cricket.com.au.
Pattinson, who has taken five wickets in two Sheffield Shield matches this summer, believes that the next challenge for him is to play more back-to-back cricket in the summer. Thanks to his history of injuries, the Australian team management have till now treaded safely with him, not playing the speedster in back-to-back matches. But Pattinson believes that form and rhythm is key for a bowler to hit the deck running.
"Coming into the team and being out for three years, the next process is to play more back-to-back cricket. I've been injury-free for the best part of a year now and the body is feeling good. Hopefully that's the next progression," he said
"When you see the batters, they're playing all the time and getting into a rhythm. As a bowler it's hard because you're always stopping and going, stopping and going. Hopefully that next process is playing consistent cricket," Pattinson explained.
With him going toe-to-toe with the likes of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins for a spot in the Test XI, Pattinson has his hands full in terms of competition, but the tearaway quick believes that the plethora of fast bowlers that are available in the country is great for Australian cricket and feels that it brings the best out of each and every individual.
"We've got a lot of fast bowlers up at the moment, which is great for Australian cricket. All anyone can do is go out there and do their best for the team they're playing in."
