Big Bash League: Sean Abbott out to end Sydney Sixers losing streak and earn more national service
SEAN Abbott has his sights set on ending his three-year international absence but not before fixing the Sydney Sixers’ worrying winless start to the Big Bash League.
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SEAN Abbott has his sights set on ending his three-year international absence but not before fixing the Sydney Sixers’ worrying winless start to the Big Bash League.
The Sixers are yet to break their duck from two starts this BBL season, but it hasn’t been due to a lack of performance with the bat and ball from Abbott.
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The 25-year-old was the was the leading BBL wicket-taker last season and had three early wickets after conceding just seven runs early in the Sixers’ loss to Perth at the SCG last Saturday night.
“I’d definitely be ready for it,” Abbott said of an international recall with Australia.
“All the guys that are playing for our country are playing well so there is a lot of competition around. It’s always in the back of your mind, everyone wants to play for their country. I had taste of it a few years ago and it’s something I want to get back to. But there’s a lot of hard work to do especially at 0-2.”
Abbott played a solitary one-day international and three T20 games against Pakistan and South Africa in 2014 in the United Arab Emirates.
In those matches he had a taste of the just what it takes to make it at the highest level.
“The intensity and the pace the game can move at (made an impression),” Abbott said.
“It was just one ODI and some 20-20 games but to see the way the other players in the team went about it (helped a lot). To see how guys like Dave Warner, Steve Smith, Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson prepare for those competitions and match ups was the biggest thing I took out of it. There are still things to improve on to get to that next level like to keep doing well at this level.”
Improvement is also needed if the Sixers are to have any hope of making the semi-finals after dropping the opening games to Sydney rivals the Thunder and then the Scorchers.
Thursday night’s clash with the Adelaide Strikers is looming as a must win.
“It isn’t the way we wanted to start the season but it’s forced us to play good cricket and not let our guard down in the games to come,” Abbott said.
“But there are some positives, we’ve managed to scrap both games with the bat to get to 150 and 130 and keep ourselves in the game. We’ve improved our powerplays with the bowling which was an area we were very poor in last year. You’ve got a lot of hard work to do from 0-3.
“You pretty much have to go without any losses for the rest of the season. We’re still a confident group going into the next game.”