Australia all-rounder Mitchell Marsh said he is looking forward to once again taking on the ‘best in the world’ Jasprit Bumrah in the third Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at The Gabba in Brisbane, starting from December 14.
Bumrah has been in stellar form during the first two Tests of the series, and has plucked the most wickets in the series (12).
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Most of Australia’s top order has struggled to deal with Bumrah’s prowess with the new ball and Marsh revealed how he will be aiming to tackle the Indian pacer.
Speaking on Thursday, the all-rounder said that if you try to just see off Bumrah, you’re likely to get out to him. He stressed that the best way to tackle Bumrah is instead to take on the challenge and apply pressure instead.
“I think when you have the best bowler in the world and you are just trying to see him off he is going to have one with your name on it. I think it is about applying pressure with your own method and taking the challenge on,” Marsh said of Bumrah.
“We know right now he’s probably the best bowler in the world. It’s just about getting up for that challenge. It’s a big series. You want to take the best in the world on. That is certainly my mentality. (I) look forward to facing him again.”
Marsh is the only top-order Australian batter who hasn’t been dismissed by Bumrah in the series so far. However, the all-rounder isn’t ready to rest on his laurels.
“He’s coming,” Marsh joked. “Everyone has their own plans and we all bat differently so (it’s about) the situation in the game,” he added.
“Sometimes you have to get through a spell and sometimes it is time to attack. We have guys in our batting lineup who just play differently. Getting through your own way and moving the game forward is really important when you are facing one of the best attacks in the world.”
Marsh also said he will stick to his approach, even though the Gabba Test is expected to be a low-scoring affair, if previous results are any evidence.
“I think I have had a really clear method over the last 18 months with the way I have gone about it. That will continue,” he said.
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Marsh also expressed his confidence in Steve Smith’s ability to bounce back in the third Test. Smith has only managed 19 runs in three innings so far in the series.
“We know he’s one of our best players ever and I’m certainly backing him to get some runs. I’m probably not in a position to tell Steve Smith what he should work on. We know he’s a class player and he’s scored a lot of runs for Australia and we know at times when we’ve needed him, he always seems to step up,” Marsh said.
‘Focus on this week’
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India come into the Gabba Test after their 10-wicket loss in Adelaide. However, they have positive memories of their historic win in Brisbane in the 2020-21 series. That victory broke Australia’s long unbeaten streak at The Gabba and secured consecutive Test series wins for India in Australia.
Marsh said the hosts are focused on the present, not dwelling on past results. After their 295-run defeat in Perth, they responded strongly in Adelaide to level the series. They aim to continue this momentum in Brisbane.
“The biggest thing for us is just focusing on this week and not what’s happened in the past. The way we bounced back from Perth was an example of that. We’re really focused on playing our style this week and hopefully going 2-1 up in the series,” Marsh said.
The third Test will be played in Brisbane from Saturday.