Picture Credit: Twitter/@stevesmith49
Australian leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson will be making his Test debut against Pakistan when Australia will take on the home side in the 2nd Test at National Stadium in Karachi. Australian skipper Pat Cummins disclosed the same while announcing the squad on Friday and added that pacer Josh Hazlewood would sit out in the second Test. Notably, Mitchell Swepson is the first specialist leg spinner to play for Australia in the last 13 years in Test cricket.
Australia's former skipper and prolific batter Steve Smith wished Swepson' Good luck on the eve of 2nd Test. Taking to Twitter, Smith wrote, "It's been a while since a Leg spinner debuted for Australia in Test cricket. I have no doubt Mitch Swepson will be far more successful than the last leggie. Good luck, mate! Can't wait to walk out there with you tomorrow."
While announcing Swepson's debut, Cummins informed that the leggie is pumped, and simultaneously, the whole team is happy for him. "It's been a while he is running drinks over the last couple of years, but he is absolutely ready now. I think the wicket here looks a little bit drier, historically a bit friendlier for the spinners," said Pat Cummins.
Notably, Smith has himself started off as a leggie and hence even shared a picture of himself alongside Swepson to make fun of his own abilities.
Swepson's selection at Karachi, following a high-scoring draw at Rawalpindi, makes him the first specialist leggie to debut since Bryce McGain, who made his debut at the age of 35 and went wicketless in his solitary Test appearance against South Africa in 2009. The leggie first debuted against India in the shortest format of the game in 2017 and is capped at the International level in T20Is.
He has picked 11-wickets in seven games played so far at the international level, while his 51-match first-class career has seen him scalp 154 wickets at 34.45 with four five-wicket hauls.
Speaking of Australia's historical tour to Pakistan, the first Test between both teams could not bore results as the Rawalpindi surface turned out to be too batting friendly. The pitch conceded close to 1200 runs in five days of the game at the cost of 14-wickets. The pitch earned massive criticism from all around, including Australian players. Notably, ICC even termed the pitch 'below average' and gave demerit points to the stadium after ICC's match referee Ranjan Madugalle submitted its reports to the cricket's apex body.