Australian spinner Adam Zampa has not given up on his dream of playing Test cricket for his country.  The star leg-spinner is confident that he stands a realistic chance of playing in the red-ball format in the foreseeable future.

“I think, realistically, still a chance to play Test cricket. If I was playing a lot of Shield cricket right now with the way I’m bowling, the bowler I am, think I’d be fine, I’d be doing really well. The few games I have played in the last couple of years are suggestive of that,” Zampa said on the Final Word podcast.

“Even if I do get picked in the upcoming subcontinent tours, people will say, well his record is averaging 46 with the ball, it’s not good enough, people will say that I’m sure, but if I do get picked I’ll know that the way I feel like I’m bowling, it’ll be fine,” he added.

With Australian selectors not known for preferring two spinners in Tests in home conditions, the earliest Zampa can expect to play in the red-ball format is when the Aussies tour Sri Lanka next year for a 2-match Test series.

Though Zampa has been incredible for the Aussies in white-ball cricket and especially in the T20I format, he still needs to work on his first-class numbers. The 32-year-old averages 46.98 with the ball in hand in first-class cricket and has claimed 111 wickets in 40 appearances.

“I was lucky to…be part of a winning World Cup team. Looking forward, the franchise thing isn’t for me. I want to keep playing for Australia as long as I can, the feeling of success in that team is something I want more of. I’m lucky enough to have signed a two-year with Australia and it’s on the basis of wanting to play every game for Australia. It meant I had to make some decisions around franchise cricket,” he further added.