Cricket fans and commentators are heaping praise on Scott Boland after the Aussie star’s heroics were largely overshadowed by Travis Head and Mitchell Starc in the first Ashes Test. Starc was named player of the match for his 10 wickets, while Head is the talk of the cricket world for his stunning century in the fourth innings.
But it was actually Boland who turned the match in Australia’s favour when England looked to have a strangle-hold on it. The Poms made a bright start to their second innings, and had reached 1-65 on the morning of day two.
Scott Boland’s heroics in the second innings were largely overshadowed. Image: Getty
At that point they led by 105 runs with nine wickets in hand, and looked destined to set Australia a big total to chase. But Boland bounced back from a poor showing in the first innings and stood up when it mattered most in the second.
The Victorian rocked England with three quick wickets of Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope and Harry Brook – the latter of which made 52 in the first innings. Boland got Duckett for 28, Pope for 33 and Brook for a duck, and his stunning triple-strike reduced England to 4-76.
Scott Boland produced a crucial triple-strike that turned the first Ashes Test in Australia’s favour. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
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He later removed Gus Atkinson for 37, helping end a lower-order waggle from England’s tail. Boland finished with 4-33 – the best figures of any Australian bowler in the second innings – as England flopped to just 164, which set Australia only 204 for victory.
But somewhat cruelly for Boland, his match-turning spell was largely forgotten by the time the match wrapped up later that day. Head completely stole the show with 123 off 83 balls to guide Australia to victory, which was the fastest century in the fourth innings of an Ashes Test ever.
Head rightly got the plaudits, while Starc was celebrated for his 10-wicket match with player of the game honours. Unfortunately for Boland he mostly missed out on the praise, despite being responsible for dragging his team off the canvas.
Aussies admit to first innings error with Scott Boland
At one point in the first innings, Mark Waugh said Boland had produced the “loosest three overs I’ve seen him bowl in his whole Test career”. Speaking after the match, Aussie coach Andrew McDonald admitted they got the tactics wrong with Boland, who was told to bowl a bit fuller than he normally would.
The Victorian went wicketless and conceded six runs per over in an uncharacteristic display. “The plans we had on day one in Perth was to get it full and did we overpitch on day one? I think that was probably the reflection,” McDonald admitted. “So he was a little bit full and got driven down the ground.
“I didn’t think he bowled badly, I think potentially they played him well. And then we were able to settle back into that seven to eight-metre length which he’s exceptional at, he found the channel.
“There was a little more movement in our second innings as well with the ball, so I don’t know whether that showed up in the numbers but there was a little more swing for us and Scotty was able to show that accuracy that he has over time. [He] got that extra bounce and became a little more challenging in that channel at that seven to eight-metre length, which is his natural length. Maybe those plans on day one didn’t suit Scotty … maybe we got that wrong from a coaching perspective.”
Commentator Andrew ‘Menners’ Menczel wrote online: “Massive shout-out to Scott Boland. Hammered yesterday, but today he turned the game with three quick wickets. That’s character.” Another person wrote: “Boland’s spell shifted momentum when it mattered most.”