Khawaja struggles while Bollinger shines
Queenslander Usman Khawaja botched the first act in his Ashes auditions when falling cheaply against South Australia in the Sheffield Shield match at Glenelg Oval.
In reply to SA’s 387 all out, the Bulls crawled to 3-143 at stumps on Thursday’s second day.
Khawaja, hoping to press his claims for a Test recall in front of national coach Darren Lehmann, made a stuttering eight from 43 balls.
The lefthander, who struggled to find gaps in the field during his knock, shuffled back and across his crease to a Johan Botha spinner and was trapped lbw.
Khawaja was openly disappointed at the dismissal, hovering at his crease before trudging off. As he departed, he appeared to exchange words with the jubilant South Australians.
The 26-year-old’s failure comes as he battles with a host of other batsmen for what appears one vacancy in the Australian Test team for the looming series against England.
Khawaja was dropped from the Test side after managing only 114 runs at an average of 19 in Australia’s failed away Ashes campaign in July-August.
His latest flop came as Queensland made a grinding response to the Redbacks’ first innings.
The visitors faced 58 overs for their runs, with patient opener Nathan Reardon making an unbeaten 55 from 155 balls.
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SA coach Darren Berry was reluctant to criticise the Bulls’ lack of scoring intent.
“I’m not going to drawn on how other teams play because I’m focusing on how South Australia play,” he said.
“Maybe that is indicative of a pretty slow, straight wicket … (but) it’s a pretty good batting wicket.”
Botha claimed all the wickets, finishing with 3-35 from 20 overs. He dismissed Greg Moller (26), Khawaja and Joe Burns (51).
Earlier, the Redbacks’ first innings was curtailed by Queensland paceman Luke Feldman, who claimed five wickets.
SA resumed at 4-294 but lost momentum as Feldman finished with 5-101 from 30 overs and Test paceman Ryan Harris claimed 3-42 from 23 overs.
Tom Cooper’s sterling knock ended on 171 while Botha made 61, both falling to Feldman.
“I was a bit disappointed with our first session today, I thought we lacked intent,” Berry said.
“We were a little bit pedestrian early … in saying that, at stumps, I’d rather be in our camp than theirs.”
In other matches around the nation yesterday Fawad Ahmed has given the Australian selectors a timely reminder of their spinning options for the Ashes series after taking 6-68 to collapse Western Australia’s innings in their match against Victoria.
WA were cruising at 3-218 when John Rogers fell five short of a maiden first-class century, sparking a momentous collapse to be 9-240 and all out for 270, 42 short of Victoria’s opening tally of 312.
The legspinner looked lively but expensive at 1-51 before dispensing with the WA tail in ruthless fashion.
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After catching Marcus North leg before with the last ball before lunch, Ahmed took the scalps of Whiteman (1), Cartwright (5), Agar (1), Rimmington (11) and Hogan (13).
In Perth and what was meant to be a walk in the park is turning out to be a nightmare for England in their tour opener against a second-string WACA Chairman’s XI.
The Chairman’s XI were 4-369 at stumps with Chris Lynn on 104.
Opener Marcus Harris made 69 earlier in the day before edging James Anderson through to gully.
The tour opener was slated as a bowl-off between Chris Tremlett, Boyd Rankin and Steven Finn, but all three failed to fire in the first two sessions.
Rankin conceded 25 runs from his first three overs after bowling a series of horrible full tosses.
England rested skipper Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Graeme Swann and Broad for the match.
Even so, they would have been expecting a far brighter start against a WA line-up that was missing most of its best players due to Sheffield Shield duties.
Lynn, who was drafted in from Queensland to bolster the WA side, took up where Harris left off, cracking 11 fours and a six to further frustrate England’s pop gun attack.
Australian selectors were also given another heads-up; NSW bowler Doug Bollinger was brilliant in slow conditions with his reverse swing cutting through the Tasmanian line-up to leave the visitors in a precarious position at 9-195 at stumps.
NSW were bowled out for 288 in their first innings and are in the box seat with the wicket set to become increasingly difficult to bat on.
Bollinger has already had a conversation with Australian coach Darren Lehmann, who told the left-hander he likes his aggression and would come back on the radar with wickets to his name.
The 32-year-old certainly followed instructions on Thursday, on track to better his best first-class figures of 6-47.
Australia’s fast bowling stocks have been plagued by injury ahead of the Ashes, leaving an opening alongside Peter Siddle and Ryan Harris for the first Test at the Gabba.
“I am not dead,” he said.
“I feel pretty good and the way I went today, who knows? I have just got to keep doing my best and see what happens.
“(Lehmann) said that good old cliche that batters get runs and bowlers get wickets and the rest looks after itself and that’s what I am trying to do.”
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