Tim Paine has never fought harder. Mentally exhausted, gloves drenched in sweat, he felt he had been batting forever.
Looking up at the PCA Stadium scoreboard on the second morning of the first Test against India, Paine viewed a sobering reality – he had made all of nine runs.
At times like these Test cricket can feel a task almost too vexing for any man, let alone a 25-year-old Tasmanian wicketkeeper raised on pitches more helpful to seam than spin.
Paine, though, stood up to the pressure applied by Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha and Zaheer Khan, inching from there to a Test-best 92.
“I said to Watto (Shane Watson) at one stage it’s as hard as I’ve had to fight,” said Paine.
“I think I was on nine at the time, it felt like I’d been out there forever, it was hot, and I was finding it really hard to score, they were bowling really well.
“I think down the track it’s probably something I’ll look back on when I’m in tough situations again.”
Australia’s batting line-up looks considerably different with Paine at No.7, a steadying influence on proceedings where his predecessors Adam Gilchrist and Brad Haddin have been giddying ones.
Given the recent tendency for the Australian middle order to be fragile, Paine offers fewer shots than Haddin but a greater ability to stem a tide that is flowing towards the opposition.
It is unlikely Haddin could have eked out the runs that Paine did on day two of the Test, and less likely still that he would have been able to collect them in his favoured manner without giving up his wicket along the way.
With aggressors fore and aft of him, Paine can play as the scenario dictates, thanks to a technique honed on the sporting Bellerive Oval yet also capable of adapting to spin.
It helps to have the assistance of an in-form Mitchell Johnson, who felt free to swing cleanly with the reliable sight of Paine at the other end.
“Mitch is a bit underrated with the bat, when he’s in good form he’s a batsman, and he scores his runs very quickly,” said Paine.
“So he takes the pressure off me, puts the bowlers under pressure and we both get more balls to score off, so he’s good to bat with.”
Should he get the nod to play, the leg-spinning allrounder Steve Smith is made of similar stuff, using his excellent eye to cuff rapid runs, provided he has an able partner.
Their aggression relieves some of the imperative for Paine to be a high octane batsman, and so does Australia’s newfound status as a team of battlers.
When they enjoyed a more dominant position, Gilchrist and Haddin were the cavalry, chasing a foe in retreat or outflanking them if things became awkward.
Now that the Australians are a lesser combination, consigned to the limitations of trench warfare, Paine has proven himself a sturdy footsoldier.
His potential value to the Ashes campaign should not be underestimated.
Build your own fantasy cricket team and put it to the test with Draftstars daily fantasy competitions. Pick your match, pick your team and watch the points roll in to take out cash prizes on each match. What are you really gambling with? Set a deposit limit.
Australian fast bowling great Jason Gillespie has been named head coach of Pakistan's Test team, as the nation overhauls its coaching department ahead of…
Will Jacks got RCB past the 200 target set by Gujarat with four overs to spare.
With Rajasthan needing 25 off 17, both batsmen ended up at the same end but the bowler dropped the throw from his teammate -…
A six-laden, 27-ball 84 from Jake Fraser-McGurk to continue his outrageous debut IPL!
Johnny Bairstow has hit his way back into form with a 45-ball century as he steered his side to a record-breaking win, easily chasing…
It seems franchise cricket has forgotten about the great battle between bat and ball. In fact, this season in the IPL there is no battle at all.
