I have little interest in test cricket these days. I went right off the Australian team many years ago because of their arrogant attitude, including sledging and whingeing when things went against them, and, not least, the reluctance of the selectors to pick Victorians. It was capped off by the sandpaper incident in South Africa which brought disgrace upon our nation.
So for a long time I have barracked for Australia's opponent in test cricket, unashamedly. I had a good laugh last year when India came from behind and won the series. I don't care if you're Australian, English, Indian, Pakistani, Kiwi, whatever, my respect needs to be earned, and is not given blindly through nationalistic hoorah. This extends beyond cricket by the way, to tennis and other sports, in fact into all areas of life including politics and international affairs.
But in the main, I couldn't give a fig about the result of the test cricket, though I do always like to see Victorians do well. Despite having moved to South Australia where I now reside (and paid well over $20,000 stamp duty to the SA gov and drive a car with SA plates and buy SA'n when I can), in the cricket I follow Victoria, and of course in the footy I'm 100% Melbourne. I'm warming to Alex Carey and Travis Head, but my interest really in the Boxing Day test was for Mark Harris and Scott Boland to do well. Did they ever?
About 6 years ago (I think), we were over here in March on holiday, staying in a caravan park (West Beach?), somewhere between Glenelg and the airport. As it happened Victoria was playing SA at the Glenelg ground and as Gord was keen on the cricket we went and watched on a couple of the days. The Adelaide Oval was unavailable for cricket, maybe some festival was on. The Vics had a strong team and won outright. If it wasn't the shield final it was the game before to get a spot in the final, which Victoria won, for memory one of three shields in a row. There was hardly a crowd at all, we went to the other side of the ground where nobody was and sat on the single row of seats outside the fence behind which was grass.
Young Scott Boland was fielding at fine leg on the fence each second over for a while, and I had quite a chat to him between balls. At one point the batsman made a big hook with a flourish and the ball flew high, I thought for a minute it was going to land on us. Scott took off and didn't get there to catch it, it went so high and had bit of a spinning curve on it from the top edge of the bat. As Scott returned to his position we all had a bit of laugh about how we all thought it was to land on us.
Since then I've kept a bit of an eye on his performances, glad to see he made the Australian ODI team in 2016, hoping he'd one day make it into the test team, which never really looked likely as NSW quicks Starc, Hazelwood, an Cummins had a stranglehold and there was a couple of others ahead of Scott when one of them was sidelined through injury. So I was very happy to see him get a game finally through injury to Hazelwood and workload worry for Richardson and Meser. How lucky is that. I thought he was set up to fail, to be a bit player, bowling only to give Starc and Cummins a rest, rotating with Lyon and Green. At least he'd be able to say he'd played test cricket, if only for one game.
I was very pleased he took a wicket in England's first innings, and made further contribution late with two outfield catches. Robbie was over for a few days at Christmas and I was taking him back to the airport the day after Boxing day. We listened to the cricket on the radio, day 2 of the test, last hour, England batting second time. Starc took two early wickets, Scott came on first change took a wicket immediately then removed the nightwatchman. 2/2
Next day, yesterday, I watched it on TV. Starc took another wicket, then almost unbelievably, Scott took four wickets for few runs of four overs, to finish with 6 for 7. I was so happy for him. He won the medal for best player of the match. Amazing. It's one to stick in my memory to be recalled every Boxing day, by me while I'm around, and history well past that. And especially by Scott and his family.
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