Aaron Finch was undoubtedly the only Australian to display any zeal or resistance with the bat at Guyana against the Proteas last evening. All other Aussie batsmen collapsed like a pack of cards while chasing 190 on a sluggish wicket at Guyana. Finch, who scored 72 out of the team total of 142, admitted that chasing on such an uneven wicket was always going to be a perilous task.
Finch, though, fully credited the South African bowlers for their efforts to defend 190. The new ball bowlers, especially Kagiso Rabada, and Wayne Parnell made an immediate impact as they struck right at the top to dent Australia’s chase. After the good work of the pacers, it was time for the spinners to shine and wrap up the formalities.
“We knew that we had to try and take on the new ball a little bit and I probably didn’t do that straight up,” Finch said. “The pressure builds on other players and that was unfortunate. It took me a while to get going. Yes, there was some very good bowling and you have got to give credit on a wicket that suited bowling. I thought that they executed excellently in the first 10 overs; that pulled them well ahead of the game.”
“I think that chasing 188 on a wicket like that was always going to be tough,” Finch said. “We probably needed one or two big partnerships to really kick us off but three down early wasn’t ideal and we knew that as soon as the spinners come on, the new batters come in and it’s always going to be hard,” Finch further added.
The right-hander, though, was pleased with his own contribution. “It was nice to get a few runs,” Finch said. “When you look up and you only get done at 50-odd runs, it’s disappointing. I thought that when I was batting with Nathan Lyon we could still get home and it was my responsibility and I got out. So that was disappointing, it doesn’t feel good getting runs when you lose. You move on and regroup and the players in our side are world-class so no doubt that we can turn it around quickly.”