Batting out in the middle is always fun with Marcus Harris: Aaron Finch

Australia made the best of the decision to bat first at Perth. Both openers Aaron Finch and Marcus Harris put up a splendid opening partnership of 112 runs despite there being substantial life in the pitch. The Indian bowlers learned from their mistakes and managed to make a comeback in the last two sessions, the hosts still did pretty well to end up with 277/6 at the end of the day.

Finch scored a brilliant fifty before getting trapped in front of the stumps by Jasprit Bumrah. After the end of the day’s play, he interacted with the reporters and talked about the playing conditions at Perth as well as the surface. He also described his batting stint with Marcus Harris in the middle and lauded the youngster for his commendable work with the bat.

We would’ve taken this batting performance at the start of the day

There were a lot of assumptions on how the pitch would play at the New Perth stadium. With most of the surface covered in grass, India took the bait and went in with four pacers. Finch admitted that it wouldn’t be an easy task to bat here. At the same time, he also mentioned that off-spinner Nathan Lyon can use the extra bounce in his favour.

“It’s going to be one of those games that’ll be a real grind for both sides. Our plan was to bat first on this wicket regardless of what happened in Adelaide. The position we’re in, we would have taken at the start of the day, especially winning the toss and batting. I think Nathan Lyon will enjoy bowling with the amount of bounce on this track.” Finch said.

Batting out in the middle is always fun with Harris

During their hundred run partnership, Finch really enjoyed batting with Marcus Harris. The youngster was in spectacular form during the Sheffield Shield. Today, he top-scored for the hosts with 70 runs. Finch remarked that his technical aspects were spot on and the way he adapted himself according to the situation was quite fascinating.

“Marcus is a pretty chilled out character who just goes with the flow. He’s a great guy, but I think the tightness of his technique, the way he covers his off stump, looks to hit down the ground. For such a short guy that can be quite unique at times. He’s definitely got all the shots, but I think the way he adapts his game depending on the wicket and attack will hold him in great stead,” the opener added.

This series hasn’t been the first instance when Finch and Harris have batted together. Both of them also represent Victoria, so there’s been a bit of a chemistry between them. Finch asserted that both of them inspire a lot of confidence in each other while batting in the middle. The 26-year-old has surely impressed with his game so far.

“We’ve also played quite a bit of cricket together for Victoria so when you have a good relationship with somebody that stuff takes care of itself. Batting out in the middle is always good fun with him. He keeps it pretty simple pretty relaxed. We just keep reminding each other to focus on what our game plan is and what our strengths are,” he stated.

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