Ashes 2021-22: I Thought I'd Never Play Another Test Again: England’s Dawid Malan
Published - 10 Dec 2021, 11:54 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:02 AM
England batter Dawid Malan has said that he had thought he would never play Test cricket again especially after spending an extended time out of the England whites. However, he has roared back into form as he made his comeback to the England Test team against India at home.
The 34-year-old came to the rescue of the England team in the ongoing first Test against Australia at the Gabba, Brisbane of the ongoing Ashes 2021-22 series. Malan, who made 80*, added an unbeaten 159 runs for the third wicket on Day 3 with captain Joe Root (86*) in Brisbane and will be eyeing only his second Test hundred when he takes guard at the Gabba tomorrow.
“I thought I’d never play another Test again. I actually said to Root when we were on 40 or 50… we both had similar scores… ‘I’ve really missed this’. The Barmy Army were singing, the crowd was going and your adrenaline was going (too). I’ve missed having someone trying to blow my head off all the time. You are playing against the best bowlers going around. It’s good fun. It’s really good fun,” Malan told reporters after the end of day’s play.
England ended day three on 220/2 trailing by 58 runs against Australia in the ongoing first Ashes Test at The Gabba, Brisbane.
Test Cricket Is The Pinnacle For Me: Dawid Malan
Notably, Malan played 14 Tests in 2017–2018 since making his debut for England against South Africa in 2017, and the ongoing first Test was his 18th Test match in Brisbane.
Malan told reporters: “Test cricket is the pinnacle for me. You can do as well as you want in T20 or 50-over cricket, but you are judged by your Test career at the end of it. So to come to Australia — to come on these bouncy wickets against these fast bowlers, that’s the test, especially for us in an Ashes series.”
“For us, an Ashes series is the biggest series of our calendar. To come here and get runs against this really good attack is very satisfying. I’m so proud to be able to stand out here in an England shirt. Especially to do it here at the Gabba in front of everyone.”
Malan further said that England needs 250-300 runs more to put themselves in a good position and felt that with a long batting line-up at their disposal, and said they are in with a chance to set a decent target for Australia in the fourth innings.
