Former Australian wicket-keeping great Ian Healy has questioned the tactical acumen of Cooper Connolly, saying he was “angry” with the way the opener handled India’s pace spearhead Mohammed Shami in the Champions Trophy semifinal in Dubai. Connolly, a late addition to the Australian squad and a surprise pick to open the batting against Rohit Sharma’s side ahead of Jake Fraser-McGurk in the last-four clash on Tuesday, was dismissed for a nine-ball duck by Shami. India defeated Steve Smith’s side by four wickets with Virat Kohli’s brilliance shining through on a slow wicket to make the final.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!“I got so angry. (Opening partner) Travis Head was gesturing about how slow the wicket was to his partner (in Connolly),” said Healy on SEN Radio.
Australia were expecting Connolly to rise to the occasion, but the batter, playing only his fourth ODI, edged it behind the stumps.
“Cooper Connolly just kept swinging. In those conditions, you have to work the ball around into gaps and not swing (for the fences). He faced nine balls for nought. A duck and he played and missed at the first eight and then nicked the ninth,” said Healy.
Australia were dismissed for 264 in 49.3 overs with India chasing down the target with 11 deliveries to spare.
“Mohammed Shami was the bowler and I was just getting so angry. It was such poor thinking and when you’re batting in tough conditions, you have got to work hard. He was swiping away, square on the off-side and just not watching the ball at all.” Healy added that the opener wasn’t even watching the ball and kept missing the line.
Though Smith and Alex Carey scored half-centuries, the momentum in Australia’s batting was missing after the setback of losing Connolly early.
“There were three and a half hours of hard work (to be had there) and it was just reckless thinking rather than getting the ball on the bat and using your footwork.
“Connolly’s footwork was absent, his shot selection was poor and his technique of the shot was poor because he wasn’t watching the ball. His head was watching the gap (in the field) where he thought the ball was going to go and he kept missing it all the time,” added Healy.
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from: NDTV Sports-Latest