Neil Wagner was enduring the pain of a fractured finger, sustained while batting in the early innings of the first Test against Pakistan, but he persevered through that injury and threw 21 overs in Pakistan’s opening innings because he would have ‘taken a stretcher’ to take him off the field where he would be sitting and watching his teammates do the hard work.
Wagner was hit on his right foot by a Shaheen Afridi Yorker on the second morning, but was later cleared to play if he could tolerate the pain.
“I’m very proud of something like that,” Wagner said of bowling despite the pain. “But it all depends on the team. There is still a way to contribute for them. I wouldn’t want to sit off to the side with my foot up and watch the guys doing the hard work, and I can’t. There to help. I feel like they’ll be left out of me. , I have a bit of FOMO. Injuries happen and it’s bad luck, but I can still walk, I can still do things, I can run. It’s not going to stop me. It’s painful and uncomfortable, but it’s just one of those things that you have to deal with.
“Test matches are not easy. Playing for your country is never something you can take for granted. I know how fucking hard I had to work to get to where I am right now and I’m sure I’m not going to sit on the side and See other people do it. I want to be a part and do my part. Unless they carry me on a stretcher, I’m going to try to do whatever I can, I guess. “
Wagner had continued to hit after being hit on the toe, received treatment from the physical therapist and was ultimately the last man out for 19, to stretch New Zealand’s first inning total to 431. Wagner then sent 21 overs, three on on the second day and 18 on the third, winning 2 for 50 to knock Pakistan out 239. Wagner’s effort included a long streak of nine overs, during which he fired Fawad Alam before leaving the field.
Play on the third day was interrupted by several rain breaks, and the pain reliever shot on the first helped Wagner survive to the end.
“It hurts every time I walk, to be fair,” he said, responding to whether the pain was more acute while bowling. “Just walking on the thin leg, doing anything, twisting, twisting … as soon as you bend your toe a little bit. I guess obviously standing hurts. It’s just one of those things I guess. Try to get it out of your mind and Keep going. Try to get into the battle and try not to think too much about it. Obviously, that’s difficult because it’s in the back of your mind all the time. At first, I felt like … not having to change my action, but I felt a little uncomfortable. It wasn’t until the first rain that I went down and said I couldn’t take the pain, I did a jab and that took the pain away a lot and helped. It’s one of those things, you just have to find a way and deal with it. “
To focus his mind more on the task at hand than the pain, Wagner said he also did not keep track of the number of overs he had thrown and expressed confidence in being able to pitch again in the second inning.
“I know how fucking hard I had to work to get to where I am now and I’m sure I’m not going to sit on the sidelines and watch other people do it.”
NEIL WAGNER
“I’ve bowled, I don’t even know how many overs, I didn’t want to count them and think too much about it,” he said. “So I’m pretty sure I can go bowling again. It’s going to be very painful, no question about that, but bowling always is … I’ve never bowled in a game at the that something doesn’t hurt so it’s part of It’s a different pain but I have to find a way to keep contributing to the team. There is still a role to play and we still have to go back to get ten wickets again and try to win a match of test. So whatever way I can play a role, I’ll still have to try. “
Wagner called the third day one of the most difficult he had ever experienced, going back to a Test match against India in October 2016 for a comparable experience.
“I went back to the locker room and said it was probably one of my toughest test cricket days that I had ever experienced. It took me back to Kolkata against India, probably one of the toughest matches I’ve ever played. It was pretty hot and dealing with it. heat, humidity, and going out and changing your clothes after every four more spell … I went through four sets and was completely devastated from exhaustion from the Indian heat. Today was right there. It was quite difficult.
The possibility of Wagner being available to bowl in the fourth inning will be a boost for New Zealand. Pakistan had collapsed to 80-for-6, and looked in danger of falling well short of the next mark, but the half-century struggle of Mohammad Rizwan (71) and Faheem Ashram (91) meant they avoided that fate. New Zealand still has a good 192 lead, and is likely to push for quick runs in the second inning and a statement when it starts hitting again on day four.
Wagner praised Pakistan’s determination, but also praised his teammates for not letting the intensity drop.
“The wicket is deteriorating right now and we knew we had a big task to try to take them down today. I think today was the best time to hit, but it was also difficult in periods because there was a bit of variable rebound and the ball went up. and it went down a fraction, “he said. “Those cracks are starting to come into play a little bit more now, as the game goes on. But they hit really well. They’ve played this whole Test Match well. They played very well, which gave us nothing, and obviously it took a A lot of time out of the game. The way they were hitting: I thought we shot really well and put them under pressure, but they still managed to have a very good association. We kept throwing everything at them and they kept countering against us. But the credit goes to everyone. Guys, they all kept running and bowling, working really hard. We bowled as a group and we knew rewards would come our way. “
The second and final test in the series begins on January 3, and it’s one that Wagner doesn’t intend to miss if he can help it.
“I don’t want to look too far, but you’re going to have to try to force me to leave,” he laughed. “We will summarize it after each day and hopefully it will get better. Hopefully we can get the job done and have a couple of days off for the foot, but we’ll see how it goes.”
Umar Farooq is a correspondent for ESPNcricinfo in Pakistan
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