London: Jul 16, 2013
Vice-captain Brad Haddin has revealed that Australia intend to exhaust James Anderson in the remainder of the Ashes 2013, as he thinks the English pace spearhead has got a 'pretty big engine'.
"He [Anderson] has shown over a long period of time that he has got a pretty big engine. It's obvious he is the one we've got to work through, he bowled extremely well in difficult conditions for fast bowlers. It's important to get him bowling a lot of overs,” Haddin was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.
Haddin admitted he knew he was out on the ball that sealed his side’s defeat in the first Ashes Test againstEngland on Sunday.
Haddin fought till the end with the gritty knock of 71 from 147 balls but Australia were bowled out in their chase of 311 to win, as England registered a nervy 14-run win. Haddin was the last man to be dismissed by James Anderson.
He said, “I hit it, so I knew I was gone. It didn't go right to plan. I would have liked to see it right through. I didn't do my job in the end."
Haddin admitted it was Australia’s plan to exhaust England's pace spearhead Anderson, who was adjudged Man of the Match for his 10-wicket haul in the match. He said it was his tactic to attack Steven Finn so that England give more overs to Anderson.
Haddin said: "Obviously Jimmy was the difference. He was at you the whole time. I had the opportunity when Finn came on to force the game a little bit. I had the feeling England didn't really want to bowl him.”
He added, “I was always going to go then and see where it got to, see if they could bring Jimmy and that back quicker than they wanted to. In the end it worked against me, he got me in the end."
The senior cricketer heaped praise on the 19-year-old Ashton Agar, and said perhaps he did not understand the enormity of the situation and went on to produce a stunning show.
"A 19-year-old kid playing in his first Test match with no fear. Whether he understood the enormity of the situation, he just watched the ball, blocked the ones on the stumps and hit the ones off the stumps. He was just enjoying the whole time. He showed us how to play, he didn't play on reputation, he just played on watch the ball and hit it,” Haddin concluded.