Steven Finn: I'm enjoying the banter
England fast bowler Steven Finn says he isn't worried about the banter and stick he has already received from various sections of the Australian public.
The six foot plus seamer played a key role in England's first tour win Down Under over http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Western-Australia-c865. He took a hard fought 2-50 but seemed to enjoy the taunts from some Australians about his huge
size and expects more of the same.
"I'm sure there will [be more verbal abuse], and we're prepared for that.
We copped a bit of abuse at the WACA last week in that last innings.
It's something we're prepared for, we'll embrace and we're going to try to enjoy.
Friendly banter is good
– to make sure we're accessible as people, we're human beings as well, and everyone's got a sense of humour," he said.
Sledging and verbal abuse in the game is not new and it has been around for decades. It is a tactic used by an opposition side to unsettle
key players in a team. The aim is to attract that player's focus away from his bowling or batting and towards the verbal banter happening around him.
The Australian public and media are well known for getting on the back of touring sides as soon as they enter Australia. Finn was always
going to be a target because he is still a relatively new player despite having taken an impressive 32 wickets in eight Test matches.
"You
can see the funny side when people are chirping you. It's part of what we have to expect as international cricketers, and to be able to deal with that is important," he added.
There are also big questions over how Finn is going to cope without traditional English pitches to bowl on and the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Duke-c54717 cricket ball to bowl
with. It was clearly evident that he was struggling in Western Australia's first innings to find the right length.
He has to correct this quickly because if he shows the same inconsistency in his bowling in the Test match arena then Australia has the players
to batter him out of the attack very quickly.
"I slid
around in the footholds in the first innings a little bit, but I don't want to make excuses.
I'm not the sort of person who is going to sit there and say it was because of the footholds I was bowling full.
It might have contributed. But I didn't bowl well in my first spell and went for three or four an over, which is something
I don't want to do in Australia," he said.
It's important to keep a check on the reality of the situation. Finn is a 21-year-old with a lot to learn in the game. He has never bowled
in Australia [before the Western Australia match] and the England set-up has to be trusted in getting him ready for the first Test in Brisbane on 25 November.
"I
adapted and managed to bowl better lengths. It's important that process happens quicker in future.
I'm 21 years old, and understand that I'm going to be inconsistent every now and again.
But it's important that I don't settle for that and I try to make myself better each time," he added.
Betting advice
Finn has all of the right qualities to do well in Australia in the respect that he is tall, very quick and surrounded by a great coaching
team. His odds for highest wicket taker out of all the English seamers will be long at this stage. He could pull it off and make a nice profit for any betting customer that shows him a little faith.
Tags: