There's been a few tweaks; hopefully someone sees it, says Weatherald ahead of Bangladesh series
Darwin, Aug 10
Returning to his hometown as Australia's opening batter, Jake Weatherald said he has made a few tweaks to his batting set-up and is hopeful that they are received well during the upcoming series opener against Bangladesh at Marrara Stadium.
Weatherald, Darwin's first-born-and-bred Test cricketer, arrives in the Northern Territory following his debut international season during last summer's Ashes, where he averaged 22.33 across 10 innings against England.
Ahead of the upcoming series against Bangladesh, Weatherald spent time playing County Championship cricket with Leicestershire, where he worked on technical adjustments to refine his top-order game.
"It was a good opportunity to put into play technical things while still playing. The conditions there were very conducive to improving my technique. Obviously, getting the ball straighter, hitting the stumps a lot more. So that was a great learning curve for me."
"There's been a few tinkerings, hopefully someone sees it. It feels like I'm completely different, but everyone says I'm still pretty similar, which is sort of what I wanted a little bit. I didn't want to change anything dramatically.
"I tried to understand what I was really good at and what I do well in first-class cricket and what I could improve on, and I did well in the Ashes and what I could slightly adjust to make a better game plan overall. I think I've done that, so I'm pretty pumped to go out and show it," he said to reporters on Monday.
Weatherald, who plays for Tasmania in domestic cricket, also noted the added expectations that come with playing in front of local supporters. "Coming up and representing your country is obviously quite a proud moment. To be in front of Territorians and knowing the journey I've gone through to be here is pretty cool. I probably cop more grief if I don't do well up here. Hopefully I make some runs for you."
He signed off by conceding that the pressure to retain his spot in the Test team is still present. "You are required to make runs all the time when you go out there, and I've got a good opportunity to play two games, hopefully, and make runs in four innings to do that. If I don't do that, then yeah, I'll put fate in someone else's hands."
— IANS
Reader Comments
Interesting how he mentions hitting the stumps more - that's a classic adjustment for Australian conditions. As an Indian fan, I know how crucial it is to adapt your game abroad. Hope he finds consistency.
The pressure of playing in front of home crowd is real - I remember how nerve-wracking it was when I had to perform in my hometown during college tournaments. Wish him all the best. 🇦🇺
Honestly, I feel Bangladesh bowling attack is underrated these days. Weatherald will need more than just technical tweaks to handle their spinners on slower wickets. Let's see how it goes. 🤔
"I probably cop more grief if I don't do well up here" - that's such an Aussie way to put it! 😄 But seriously, you can sense the maturity in his approach. Learning from County cricket and being self-aware about his game is a good sign for Aussie cricket.
Watching from India, I've always admired how Aussie players embrace the mental side of the game. This honest admission about pressure shows real character. Hope his adjustments work out - international cricket needs more open-minded players like this.
Respectfully, averaging 22 in the Ashes is below par for
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