Ashes 2019 | Josh Hazlewood admits stiff competition among pacers to make it to playing XI
Josh Hazlewood has stated that he is ready to give his best if he gets a go-ahead for the Lord's Test while saying every pacer is working hard to make it to the team. The New South Wales pacer has further added that England's plans of making pace-friendly tracks might prove counter-productive.
Edgbaston had an eerie similarity with the sub-continent wickets and there was no help for the pacers in the first innings. The absence of James Anderson also proved costly for England as a-bowler-short England struggled to dismiss Steve Smith, who scored twin centuries on his comeback game to Test cricket, and helped Australia take a 1-0 lead in the series. That might force England to contemplate making a seamer-friendly wicket for the second Test at Lord's. But Josh Hazlewood feels that it might prove counter-productive considering Australia's plethora of fast-bowling resources, with each bowler bringing a different kind of quality to the table.
"I think there'll be a little bit more in it [at Lord's], but in saying that, probably their best exponent Jimmy's not going to play. So that might weigh up different options, but I think there'll be more in it, maybe just to try to get Smithy out. But him batting on those sort of tracks is very hard work. I think it suits us as much as them if there is more in the wicket, so we'll weigh it up," Hazlewood said, reported Cricbuzz.
"If it's a dry wicket where reverse swing might come into play, or it's a very flat, then someone like Mitch Starc can come into play. If it's nice and green and seaming around, then it's myself and Sidds. I think they (the selectors) have definitely gone a different way to 2015 and I think that's purely because of how tight the Tests are (scheduled)," said Hazlewood, who felt that the selectors have covered all bases with the pace options they have picked for this series."
For the first Test, Australia went in with the combination of Pat Cummins, James Pattinson, and Peter Siddle and the three quicks did a good job as they picked up 11 wickets between them. While that was the most potent attack available in Australia, Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Michael Neser, who did not feature in the playing XI in the first Test at Edgbaston, proved themselves with a productive outing during the practice game against Worcestershire, with the three of them picking seven wickets between them.
"That's why we've got six (quicks) here and any one can do a job on any given day. We've got three guys with proper air speed and three guys who seam and swing a little bit. I think that's what they (selectors) have got six quicks for, to have all bases covered. And I guess it's just who's bowling best at that particular time leading into the Test, and who gets the nod. I think every quick really feels the pressure of the other five and vice versa, and it's great competition to have in the squad."
"Sidds has obviously been playing a lot of cricket and I think the other guys picked themselves. Jimmy has been bowling fantastic for Nottinghamshire and on the Australia A tour and in Southampton as well bowled incredibly. So it's pretty stiff competition at the moment, and we've got Mitch Starc and Michael Neser as well. It's a great group of guys, we all want everyone else to do really well as a group, and try and win the Ashes as a group of six not just us and them playing," said Hazlewood, who is hoping to make the most of the opportunity should he be selected in the playing XI for the second Test.
"I've just played the one Test there, but I thought I got used to the slope pretty quickly and felt pretty comfortable there. The conditions there have been quite bowler friendly the last few Test matches, so I'd love another opportunity. I was quite young, and quite inexperienced at that level when I first played a Test match and it probably passed me by pretty quickly. But just playing at Lord's in an Ashes Test, it doesn't really get much better so I'm looking forward to it."
The Lord's Test starts on August 14.