Boland still in the dark over crunch Boxing Day call

1 year ago 81

Australian accelerated bowler Scott Boland inactive doesn't cognize if helium volition play successful the Boxing Day Test, arsenic Josh Hazlewood pushes for a instrumentality pursuing his broadside strain.

With 3 days to spell until the 2 sides instrumentality to the MCG, the Victorian has admitted helium mightiness not find retired whether he's selected until the greeting of the lucifer against South Africa.

Facing media successful Melbourne caller from a fewer days disconnected pursuing Australia's day-two triumph of the archetypal Test successful Brisbane past week, Boland said helium hadn't "heard a thing" astir who was going to play.

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"Obviously I'm truly hoping that I get to play but yeah, I deliberation we've got a mates of large grooming sessions implicit the adjacent mates of days," helium said.

He said helium would get connection "either aft grooming (Saturday) oregon Christmas Day oregon possibly adjacent the greeting of the game".

Boland made a imagination Test debut against England successful the Boxing Day fixture past summer. He took 1-48 successful the archetypal innings, earlier astir single-handedly destroying England successful the second, taking a sensational 6-7 from conscionable 4 overs.

Boland said helium hadn't spoken to Hazlewood astir the situation.

"We get on truly good - the past 12 months person been large for maine to bid and vessel astatine the aforesaid clip arsenic him successful the nets, and truly prime his encephalon astir bowling.

"I deliberation we're bully mates truthful immoderate happens, happens."

With a powerfully defined pecking bid successful the Australian fast-bowling ranks, Boland said helium was blessed to take a backmost spot and beryllium acceptable erstwhile called upon.

"Before past year, I wasn't successful the squad astatine all, but present I'm successful the squad and (I've) been astir training, and playing these past fewer games has been great.

"I'm perfectly loving it, and hopefully I tin get support bowling truly good and support trying to beryllium successful the squad and successful the squad for years to come."

Boland said helium would proceed to hole arsenic if he's playing, and would "soak up" the Christmas ambiance successful Melbourne.

"I'm beauteous acceptable successful my routines going into grooming and starring into games, truthful I won't spell distant excessively acold distant from that.

"(Friday) I'll benignant of conscionable truly mildly rotation the limb implicit to get the assemblage moving aft having a mates of days distant ... and past Christmas Day I'll astir apt travel down grooming with my 2 girls, unbend and bask the day.

"This clip of twelvemonth successful Melbourne, it's beauteous peculiar to beryllium successful this situation and I'm going to soak it up."

Meanwhile, Shane Warne volition beryllium remembered connected aggregate occasions connected time 1 of what volition beryllium the archetypal Boxing Day Test since his death.

In a stirring pre-match ceremony, the Australian and South African teams volition locomotion past a plinth featuring a shot and floppy chapeau and the players volition deterioration achromatic wide-brim hats arsenic the nationalist anthems are performed.

Warne famously snubbed the Baggy Green successful favour of the much sun-smart floppy chapeau passim his career.

Warne's Test headdress number, 350, volition besides beryllium painted quadrate of the wicket for the duration of the match, and a graphic and highlights bundle of Australia's top wicket-taker volition look connected the large surface astatine 3.50pm connected Boxing Day.

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