Hopefully, I can throw a few more punches at Bumrah: McSweeney

Having grown in confidence during the Adelaide Test after a forgettable debut in Perth, Nathan McSweeney is hopeful to “throw some punches back” at India’s premier seamer, Jasprit Bumrah. 

McSweeney was dismissed twice by Bumrah in Perth, scoring 10 & 0. In the second Test, he scored only 39 & 10* but his first innings score laid the foundation, which Australia didn’t get in Perth.

Much like Perth, Australia had bowled India out in the first two sessions. While in Perth, India romped through Australia’s batting order, reducing them to 67/7 by stumps, which played a pivotal role in deciding the result. With a similar task in Adelaide, McSweeney was much more determined, walking off 38 not out at stumps alongside Marnus Labuschagne having battled for 33 overs. 

The pink ball and the floodlights only added to the challenge of facing Bumrah, but McSweeney was able to fulfill the first task. 

He was dismissed early the next day by none other than Bumrah but McSweeney’s three-hour-long effort for only 39 helped Australia and his confidence in terms of tackling India’s prime pacer. 

"To get a bowler like Jasprit early in my career, it's not going to get much tougher than that and I take some confidence from getting through a spell in Adelaide," he said. "The more I face, the more comfortable I'll get against him.

"Facing him for the first time, he's quite a unique bowler. He's obviously world-class and a bit different from most bowlers I've faced. [It's about] adapting to his angle and where he delivers on the crease. I got two pretty good balls from him [in Perth], so to try and wear that on the chin and trust what I've been doing is going to be good enough.

"He got me again in Adelaide - he's a great bowler, and really enjoying the experience of trying to work out a game plan on the run against a world-class player. Hopefully, I'll get better the more I face him and can throw a few more punches here at the Gabba,” said the 25-year-old. 

The second Test was in Adelaide, McSweeney’s current home ground in domestic cricket, and now in Brisbane, he would be playing  where he began his first-class journey. The right-hander began his career in Queensland’s colors as a 19-year-old before making a move to South Australia. Now back in his hometown where his family is still located, McSweeney is under pressure to arrange tickets for his closed ones. 

"The ticket allocation for me has been exhausted already. It's going to be a great experience and an awesome one for my family. I had one in Adelaide last week now I get to have another home Test in Brisbane,” McSweeney said about the prospects of another home Test.

The Brisbane-born attributed his success in Adelaide to his Queensland and Australia teammate Marnus Labuschagne with whom McSweeney shares a great bond. Considering Labuschagne’s own game was under the scanner, throws more light on the friendship between these two Queenslanders. 

"He's a super generous guy. No doubt he had some things to work on for himself but [he was able] to give me the time to really help me out. It gives me some confidence as well. [I'm in my] first game trying to work out, he's 50 games in and still trying to tinker and work things out. Guess that's the game of cricket; as a batter, you miss out more than you make runs unfortunately at times," McSweeney said. 

The series is leveled 1-1, with India winning in Perth by 295 runs and Australia making a comeback with a 10-wicket win in Adelaide. The third Test in Brisbane begins on December 14 (Saturday).  

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