Mitchell Marsh declines Test opening position for Australia after Warner’s retirement

Australian batter Mitchell Marsh mentioned he has no need to open the innings in Test cricket as soon as David Warner retires after the continuing sequence in opposition to Pakistan.

Marsh, who usually comes up within the order in white-ball cricket, asserted that he wished to proceed to bat at No. 6 within the conventional format.

“How do I answer this without making a headline? For me I appreciate there’s talk about it (him opening) and eventually we’re going to need a new opener with Davey leaving.

“But I’ve worked really hard to get back in this side and for me to look forward to having a role as an opener just doesn’t make sense to me,” Marsh was quoted as saying by ‘The Age’ newspaper.

“I love being at number six and in my last four Test matches I’ve really found my way and I guess who I am as a Test cricketer and I’m loving it, so I’m reluctant to change that.” Marsh made a counter-attacking 90 off 107 balls to assist Australia attain 487 of their first innings together with Warner’s 164.

Marsh mentioned batting at No. 6 allowed him to play the best way he desires to -– an aggressive model of cricket — slightly than enjoying a sometimes affected person and lengthy Test cricket innings.

“I think I showed glimpses of the way I played in the last 12 months throughout my career, but probably never really believed in that method.

“I tried to play the long innings and play like Steve Smith and Davey and Uzzy (Usman Khawaja) and all those guys who can bat for six hours,” he mentioned.

The 32-year-old additionally thanked his captain Pat Cummins and head coach Andrew McDonald for permitting him to pursue his pure sport.

“But I just wanted to come into this Test team and be really true to myself. I’m thankful to Patty (Cummins) and Ronnie (McDonald) for helping me get to this point where I’ve found my method that works,” Marsh mentioned.

“I don’t necessarily have the technique of Smudger (Smith) and Marnus (Labuschagne) where they can defend and leave for hours and get through those periods.” Marsh mentioned he likes to put the stress again on the opposition along with his rollicking batting.

“I can put pressure back onto teams and the beauty of batting at six is if we bat well, you get some tired bowlers to try to counterattack and keep the game moving.

“Hopefully, I can stay nice and consistent,” he added.