'Our bowling attack has had less games than Mitchell Johnson by himself. So it is a real credit with the way the guys are applying themselves.'
Australia may have made batting look easy while successfully chasing 300-plus totals against India twice, but opener Aaron Finch credited the team’s inexperienced bowlers for it, pointing out that the current attack combined has played less ODIs than the country's now retired pace ace Mitchell Johnson.
The hosts recorded the highest chase at the Gabba on Friday as they scored 309 for three to win by seven wickets, with one over to spare, and take a 2-0 lead in the five-match One-day international series.
"We had found out in Perth that our bowling attack has had less games than Mitchell Johnson by himself. So it is a real credit with the way the guys are applying themselves.
“They are training hard and learning from everyone, using all their resources and fighting it out in the middle," said Finch.
- Images from the Brisbane ODI
"They are some really skillful bowlers and down the line they will definitely get their rewards. Joel Paris and Scott Bolland played only their second games, having an impact and taking their first wickets today. Kane Richardson played only his ninth game today and is putting his hand up.
"It is great to see. It was really exciting for the boys and it is about the guys learning with the ODI World Cup three-and-a-half years away. There is a chance to experiment and get games to the guys, and the selectors are thinking about that," he added.
Finch (71) put on a 145-run partnership with Shaun Marsh and the duo set the stage for Australia's successful run-chase.
At one stage, though, they were under pressure with the asking rate climbing up to seven per over.
Finch admitted that he and Marsh found it tough to score at on stage.
"We were both struggling to time it early on and Shaun was batting beautifully. I felt I was hitting the ball nicely but just couldn't hit it in the gaps. And that happens sometimes when the wicket gets slower. They bowled really well for the first 16-17 over period. Sometimes you just have to give credit to the bowlers but we both talked about it during the drinks' break and we stayed calm.
"We knew that the wicket does get better and better as it gets darker and the lights take effect. At one point I was 30 off 60-odd. So it was a conscious effort to try and take the risk factor out and accumulate runs. The run-rate got up to seven per over at one time, so we made sure we batted calmly and dragged it down without exposing the new batsman to a seven-over run chase," he said.
