2nd Test begins today
Adelaide: All-rounder Tim Bresnan voiced confidence on Tuesday that his recall to the England squad after battling an injury will give the team a much-needed boost going into the second Test against Australia.
The England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed the hard-working seamer,who has taken 67 wickets in 21 Tests, is now fit – a boon for the tourists, who lost the first Test in Brisbane by 381 runs.
“Tim Bresnan has been added to England’s Ashes squad, and is in the reckoning to play in the second Test at Adelaide this week,” the ECB said on its website.
His availability is a welcome boost for England whose third paceman Chris Tremlett failed to impress at the Gabba.
Bresnan, who suffered a stress fracture of his lower back in August, would not say whether he had been told if he will start in the Adelaide Test starting on Thursday, but hoped his positive attitude would rub off on his teammates.
“I’m quite a positive bloke, a positive player, so hopefully me coming back into the squad gives the team a lift,” he said, adding that England were ready to bounce back from their Brisbane hammering.
“Obviously we need to play well as a team. We are not a team of individuals,” he said.
Bresnan added: “I think the heavy defeat… did dent us, but we are a group of guys that when our backs are against the wall, we come out fighting.
“We’ve done it time and time again in Test series, especially when we are put under pressure and in a corner. That is where we really show our mental fortitude.”
The paceman boosted his case for a recall after claiming four wickets and scoring a half-century for a development team in Brisbane last week, a workout he said could not have gone better.
“I bowled nicely at Brisbane in both innings so there’s no reason why I can’t take that confidence into a Test match,” he said.
“The break has been really good for my back and other areas of my body as well.”
Meanwhile, Australia captain Michael Clarke skipped training to rest his injured ankle on Wednesday but team mate Shane Watson was confident he would be fit to face England in this week’s second Ashes at the Adelaide Oval.
Clarke, his country’s best batsman, rolled his right ankle in training on Monday but later batted in the nets without obvious signs of discomfort.
“Michael Clarke is not training today,” a team spokesman told reporters in Adelaide, where the second test starts on Thursday.
“His ankle is a bit stiff, sore. He will train tomorrow and will play in the game.”
Australia is used to pre-test concerns over the fitness of Clarke, who has suffered from a degenerative back condition for several years.
All-rounder Watson, no stranger to injury problems himself, said the rest was “precautionary” and Clarke would not be hampered by one day fewer in the nets.
“Obviously Michael batted beautifully in the first test so his preparation was always going to be very good anyway,” he said. (Agencies)