Harris bowls in nets to make up for lack of matches ahead of Perth Test

Perth (Australia), Jan.10 (ANI): South Australian right-arm fast bowler Ryan Harris will enter his comeback Test with more overs under his belt since Christmas than current favoured pace incumbents James Pattinson and Peter Siddle.

Under the watchful eyes of bowling coach Craig McDermott at the SCG nets recently, the 32-year-old bowled at top speed in spells of eight and four overs against several Australian batsmen, clocking 35 overs with the 40 he registered the week prior in Melbourne.

Those 75 overs combined with the 12 he bowled in the three Twenty20 games he played for Brisbane Heat has ensured Harris cannot blame a lack of conditioning should he break down in Perth.

Harris's 87 overs has been usurped only by the 98 overs delivered by Tasmanian iron horse Ben Hilfenhaus, who has a strong reputation for being able to bowl long spells.

Harris would have preferred bowling in a Shield game but, in the absence of any first-class matches during the Big Bash, hours of mind-numbing net sessions provided his only substitute for match practice.

"That's unfortunate, that's the programming. But I have to trust what I've done to get me through," th Sydney Morning Herald quoted Harris, as saying.

Harris has taken 35 wickets at an impressive average of 21 from eight Tests.

"I haven't been able to get a four-day game in, that's a disappointing thing, but I have bowled a truck load," he added.

Harris, however, is supremely confident the hard work behind the scenes in Melbourne and Sydney will ensure he pulls through the Perth Test in one piece if, as expected, he is selected ahead of left-arm quick Mitchell Starc to replace the injured Pattinson.

"Net bowling is different but when it's the only thing you can do you get into a mindset," Harris said.

He added: "I made sure I had a batter every time I bowled and tried to make it as competitive as I could. Craig McDermott was with me most of the time, it even got to a stage where I bowled blocks of overs without him telling me what I was doing so I could simulate a match scenario." (ANI)