Australia's Richardson determined to grab World Cup chance with both hands
- Kane Richardson was a late call-up to the Australia squad after injury to Jhye Richardson
- Richardson’s figures of 2/62 against Pakistan keep him in contention to face Sri Lanka at the weekend
Australian seamer Kane Richardson is determined to seize every chance that comes his way at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.
Richardson was a late call up when namesake Jhye was ruled out with a dislocated shoulder, capping a dramatic change in fortunes for the 28-year old South Australian.
On the eve of the tournament Justin Langer admitted he thought Richardson’s international career was over after a run of disappointing performances.
But some attention-grabbing performances in the Big Bash for Melbourne Renegades earned his slot for the defending champions.
With the Taunton track favouring pace, he was picked ahead of Jason Behrendorff to replace spinner Adam Zampa, as Australia claimed 41-run win over Pakistan at Taunton.
And he took two wickets to stake his claim for another shot when Australia take on Sri Lanka at the Oval this weekend.
“Anytime someone questions your bottle its tough but I was pretty disappointed in my performances at the time and knew something had to change,” he said.
“I knew he (Aaron) thought that because I remembered sitting down with him and talking about it.
“I remember going on a tour to Zimbabwe and not playing a game, you learn pretty quickly that you are outside the pecking order.
“I’ve tried to stop caring about selection and just focussed on doing my best and playing cricket. Throughout the summer I took some wickets and a few blokes fell down and I’m the next man in.
“There was no point crying about it. I just thought I’ll do everything I can, if I do end up not playing again then so be it.
“It’s good to know the guys think I’ve made progress and have confidence in me.”