‘In a good place’: Positive news for Aussie spin star

Australian coach Andrew McDonald heaped praise on the star leg-spinner who delivered four wickets in his team’s last-start win over Pakistan despite his selection being a “last-minute decision” after continuing to battle his back issues.

The haul put Zampa, who has taken eight wickets in the past two games, just six short of jumping Brad Hogg’s tally of 156 wickets to become the second most successful Australian ODI spin bowler behind Warne, who took 293 scalps.

Having conceded 1-123 in two underwhelming games to start the tournament as Australia’s No.1 spinner, Zampa has found his groove as the team has improved and McDonald was hopeful a better physical state could lead to even better performances as the Aussies push to make the semi-finals.

“He appears to be in a good place, better than he has been,” McDonald said.

“It was a nervy time leading in to the last game and an incredible effort for him to get up. It was a last-minute decision. We were meeting at 1.20 and he was declared fit at 1.19. It was a great effort not just to get up for the game but then to go out and perform and underpin the bowling performance.

“We know how critically important he is in the middle overs to take wickets and right now he’s tracking as the second best white-ball spinner to Shane Warne.

‘He’s been ultra impressive and hopefully he gets a clear run at it. It’s been well noted we only have, some people say, one spinner; we say we have two spinners in the squad, but he has a huge role to play going forward.”

Zampa, who confirmed he collided with a pool wall while swimming underwater without goggles at a team hotel before the tournament began, has also been battling a “glute niggle” on top of the back spasms at the World Cup.

He said he suffered back spasms before the third game against Sri Lanka and had “excruciating” pain but worked furiously to be able to bowl, including taking pain relief, but still battled to finish his overs in that match.

It was worse before the next game against Pakistan when he also came down with a virus and thought he was “no chance” to play.

But after passing a fitness test and then bowling Australia to a victory and a 2-2 World Cup record going into Wednesday’s fifth game against the Netherlands, Zampa was confident he could push on as his team’s No.1 spinner.

“I’ve got a bit of a stiff back but it’s getting better,” he told The Unplayable Podcast.

“I’ve been in the wars. I naturally don’t want to let anyone down. Literally, the first three games I have been less than 50-50 before each game.

“I would rather play and make it worse than sit at the hotel and feel OK to play.

“It feels good to be back in the wickets.”

Originally published as Adam Zampa finds his World Cup groove as he eyes off new record