Australia have moved early to remind England that Scott Boland at home is not the same Scott Boland they unsettled in the 2023 Ashes. With doubts lingering over Pat Cummins’ back, the Victorian’s role appears increasingly central to the hosts’ plans.
Boland, now 36, burst into Test cricket with that Boxing Day spell of 6 for 7 against England four years ago. Since then his average has held at 16.53, the best of any bowler in more than a century, while his economy-rate sits at a parsimonious 2.75. The solitary blemish came in England last year: two Tests, two wickets, an average of 115.50 and a bruising 4.91 runs per over as England’s batters walked at him and rattled his usually immaculate length.
Some, including former England captain Michael Atherton, have suggested that Cummins’ injury is a fillip for the tourists because “they have no fear for Boland”. Australia’s head coach Andrew McDonald disagrees.
“Scotty was challenged with some lack of bounce in the benign conditions in England,” McDonald said this week. “I think conditions sort of conspired a little bit against him. I know there’s been some press around that England have worked Scott Boland out. But when he comes back into the Australian conditions, he gets bounce, hits the deck, he’s a handful.”
The coach backed up his point with a reference to last year’s World Test Championship final. “And as we saw last year against India, I think Rohit Sharma rated him the best of that series. That’s a huge compliment from an opposing captain.”
McDonald believes one brief passage during the Edgbaston Test shows the difference cloud cover and movement can make. “We did get the overheads there for that short snippet at the end of day three,” he recalled. “And when he bowled a few overs under the cloudy skies, he looked like he was going to get a wicket every ball.”
England will almost certainly try the same hyper-aggressive approach when the first Ashes Test begins at the Gabba, especially if Cummins fails a fitness test later this week. The skipper needs at least four and a half weeks’ bowling before the match; tight turnarounds between the final three Tests could complicate his workload even if he is passed fit.
“So we’re confident and comfortable that Baz can get the job done in Australia, which he’s done over a long period of time. And bounce will be his friend,” McDonald said, using Boland’s nickname.
Australia have resisted rotating their fast bowlers since December 2022, sticking to Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Boland. Even so, McDonald insisted the cover is there should injuries strike. “It’d be nice if we sat back at the end of the summer and said there were only four fast bowlers used,” he noted. “But we’ve got some good options in [Brendan] Doggett, [Sean] Abbott, [Michael] Neser. Jhye Richardson is potentially coming back around t”
For England the equation is straightforward: repeat the 2023 tactic of walking at Boland and force Australia to turn early to a potentially under-bowled captain. For Australia, the message is equally clear. Conditions at home—true bounce, a bit of sideways movement when the clouds roll in, the comfort of a length he knows—make Boland a very different opponent.
