Sport

‘I’d like to see Bryce (McGain) succeed in India’

CHENNAI: Bryce McGain, the 36-year-old Victorian leg-spinner who will tour India as Australia’s first choice, has been tipped to do well against some of the best players of spin by State captain Cameron White.

“Bryce has lots of experience, and that’s important because it takes a long time to develop into a good leg-spinner,” said White after training with the Australia ‘A’ squad here at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Saturday. “Shane (Warne) showed that by bowling incredibly well at that sort of an age. It’s unfair to compare anyone with Shane, who is the best of all time, but it’s up to those selected to do their best, and I’d like to see Bryce succeed in India.”

White, whose reputation for power-hitting has overshadowed his modest leg-spin, is looking at the ‘A’ team triangular one-day series as an opportunity to develop his bowling. “I’d say my batting has gotten ahead of my bowling at the moment, and I’m looking to level those two to about the same. Tours like these will certainly help me develop. I thought I bowled quite well last game, and I’m looking to bowl more.”

What had he learnt from Warne when playing for Victoria? “We bowl different styles of leg-spin, so it’s not about the bowling itself, but more about field placements. I stood at slip and I could really see how it was coming out of his hand, and how he set batsmen up. It was an amazing experience.”

White, seen as an intuitive leader by the Australian set-up, said he nursed ambitions of representing his country in Test cricket. The 25-year-old — who has played 21 ODIs, the last of which was earlier this month against Bangladesh — hoped he wouldn’t be typecast as a limited-overs specialist.

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