Bowl a bouncer first ball: Merv Hughes
Former Test fast bowler Merv Hughes has given a unique insight into how Australia’s fast bowlers might be feeling heading into the first Test against India in Adelaide.
Speaking on Fox Sports, Hughes said it is inevitable that the likes of Mitchell Johnson and Ryan Harris will be apprehensive about bowling bouncers, given the circumstances of Phillip Hughes’ tragic death.
But Hughes has a solution to the problem: get the bouncer out of the way early.
“The longer it goes without someone bowling a bouncer, the more it’s going to be talked about and it’s going to become an issue.” Hughes said.
“I reckon just to clear the air, the first ball of each game [first Test and Sheffield Shield fixtures] should be a bouncer.”
Hughes believes the players need to keep in mind how rare the Phillip Hughes incident was in the grand scheme of things.
“It might be a callous, uncaring way to look at it but what we have to keep in mind is Phillip Hughes’ death was a tragic accident.
“There’s been bouncers bowled for over 100 years in cricket and this was an isolated incident.
“As Michael Clarke said in his speech yesterday, we must play on.”
An extremely aggressive fast bowler in his time, Hughes frequently used the bouncer to rough up opposing batsmen.
He believes the Australian players should be given the option to sit out the first Test if they don’t feel prepared.
“It’s going to affect everyone differently”, he said. “You can’t simply throw a blanket over everyone and say ‘this is what we’re going to do’.”
“To hear Ryan Harris and Mitchell Johnson speak about it, obviously some players are more affected than others.”
“Let the players make up their own minds. If they don’t feel comfortable playing, or don’t feel physically or mentally ready, don’t force them to play.”
Johnson’s re-emergence in world cricket has largely been a result of his fiery, aggressive tactics, which have featured a heavy reliance on the short-pitched delivery.
Hughes thinks it will be very tough for Johnson to stand at the top of his mark with the new ball in his hand and not worry about injuring a batsman.
In the recently completed Test match between New Zealand and Pakistan, players bowled very few bouncers following the news that Hughes had passed away.
But India don’t appear to have any plans to shelve the short-ball, if their two-day tour match against the Cricket Australia XI is anything to go by.
Fast bowler Mohammed Shami bowled Jordan Silk a bouncer second ball of the game, clipping the youngster’s helmet on the way past.
