He might not be in the scheme of things but Australian pacer Kane Richardson certainly knows how to make his presence felt with the white-ball. Warming up for the Super 12 phase of the ICC World T20 2022, pacer Richardson emerged as the pick of the bowlers for Aaron Finch-led Australia in the recently concluded practice match against Suryakumar Yadav-starrer Team India at The Gabba on Monday.
Staging an impressive fightback for the Finch-led side, pacer Richardson bagged four wickets and leaked 30 runs in his 4 overs. The Australian pacer also bagged the crucial wicket of premier batter Suryakumar, who was dismissed in the final over of the Indian innings. Middle-order batter Suryakumar smashed a quick-fire half-century to help India post a challenging total in the warm-up match.
After putting up a show for the hosts in the practice match, pacer Richardson was asked about Suryakumar's bizarre dismissal in the final over. Talking about the entertaining knock of the Indian batter, Richardson also recalled Mitchell Starc's nasty delivery that hit Suryakumar on the helmet during the warm-up contest at The Gabba.
"I think it was the first time he missed the middle of the bat against us. Starc hitting him in the head played into our hands a little bit. Tied his hands a little bit cause he started missing the middle. He's one of the best batters in the world at the moment, so it was good taking him. I'm not expecting to start, but if anything happens with form or injury, I could be in, just happy to be out in the middle today," Richardson said.
{{/usCountry}}"I think it was the first time he missed the middle of the bat against us. Starc hitting him in the head played into our hands a little bit. Tied his hands a little bit cause he started missing the middle. He's one of the best batters in the world at the moment, so it was good taking him. I'm not expecting to start, but if anything happens with form or injury, I could be in, just happy to be out in the middle today," Richardson said.
{{/usCountry}}"The atmosphere is really nice, we'll go out there and enjoy our stint in the middle, the sun is out and it's a good batting pitch. Disappointed to play in front of an empty stadium, we usually have it filled for games against India," he added.