The Beauty of Australian Cricket...
Todd Murphy's Test debut in Nagpur is the embodiment of Australian cricket. Thank God it's Friday.
Australian Test cap #465 will forever belong to Todd Murphy.
A meteoric rise for the 22-year-old from country Victoria. And, in the opinion of your scribe, this is exactly what makes Australian cricket so fascinating.
The rookie off-spinner is precisely that—a rookie. Murphy bowled medium pace until he was 16; more on this later from Paul Amy.
So, why is it so fascinating?
Call it what you will: District, grade, premier, or just club cricket, this level is but two steps from representing Australia.
For the hundreds of players, both male and female, balancing study, work, or both with the demands of semi-professional cricket, it is nothing more than a distant dream—a dream, though, that one must never give up on.
Those very players should rejoice and embrace Todd Murphy’s selection.
If you can afford the diversion, my mind goes back to December 2019.
The Victorian Country U19’s, captained by Todd Murphy, played off in the final of the CA (Cricket Australia) men's U19 championships against New South Wales Metro (NSW). A national championship was on the line at the WACA ground in Perth.
The result is inconsequential; yes, we lost, and I was the coach.
From the Victorian side just two of the 12 who played have gone on to play first-class cricket: Todd Murphy and Cameron McClure. There are four playing regular first-grade.
And, at first glance, it seems two of the NSW team have played first-class cricket: Tanveer Sangha and Lachlan Hearne.
And, now, one of the 24 players has gone on to play Test cricket, Todd Murphy.
Murphy’s selection is the embodiment of Australian cricket: you can be so far, yet so near, often without even knowing, or caring.
Then there are the rest, who must decide how long they will chase their own dreams.
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It’s Friday—Thank God!—and I wanted to share this excellent article written by my good friend, Paul Amy, on the rise and rise of Todd Murphy.
Spin sensation: How Todd Murphy rapidly rose up through country, grade and state cricket
The article was published over at CODE Sports. If you have a CODE subscription you can read it here.
If not, you can read it here. I guarantee it will be time well spent.
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