Following his five-wicket haul against Pakistan, Doug Bollinger hopes to play for Australia in the Ashes this year.
Rookie and captain hopeful for the future after series triumph
Following his five-wicket haul against Pakistan, Doug Bollinger hopes to realise his childhood dreams of playing in this summer's Ashes series.
The 27-year-old left-armer, playing only his second one-day match, took 5-35 to help Australia dismiss Pakistan for 197 in their eight-wicket victory on Friday.
Australia rode on stand-in captain Michael Clarke's unbeaten 100, who along with Shane Watson (85 not out) put on 197 for the third wicket to steer the ODI world champions to a triumph that also clinches a series win.
"It's fantastic," said Bollinger. "It is great to win the series and I am very excited and will remember this for my whole life.
"It is a dream to play in the Ashes, every young cricketer in Australia wants to achieve that as it is the best competition Australia can play and every player wants to be successful there.
"This can be the platform but I just take tomorrow as tomorrow and Sunday as Sunday and take it day by day. I get the next opportunity and make sure that I grab it with both hands and if it's Ashes it would be great."
Advantage
Clarke, filling in for the rested Ricky Ponting, believes Australia can now take confidence into the ICC World Twenty20 in June.
"We will have an advantage because we're playing as a team and a lot of these guys are going to be involved in the Twenty20 World Cup," said Clarke.
"To play the type of cricket we have, in hot conditions and tough wickets - especially after coming from South Africa, where the conditions were so different - I'm impressed with the way we've performed.
"I'm stoked personally to make some runs but I'm more happy that we've won this series. It's been a while for us."
The Aussies now hold an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series, but Clarke wants his side to continue their progress in Sunday's finale.
"There is no such thing as a dead match when playing for your country," he added. "To me, any time you put on your one-day cap, it's a big game and we have come here to win every game."
