TGIF... What next for Ashton Agar..
Personally, I’ve rankled with this question over: Is Ashton Agar really a polarising cricketer? And if so, why is this?
One of my early writing endeavours attempted to capture the relocation of the then-young Agar from suburban Melbourne to Western Australia. This afternoon, I wanted to share this with you. Nearly a decade later, Agar’s selection cycle has turned full circle.
Before we get there; some words on his current situation.
SpeakingNick is a reader-supported venture. Free and paid versions are available. The best way to support me is by taking out a paid subscription.
The 29-year-old arrived back in Perth on Wednesday after being shown the sliding door by the Australian selectors.
Agar had played in the New Year’s Test against South Africa at the SCG before being subsequently omitted from the first two Test matches in India.
The necessity of playing a left arm spinner in India has been communicated and documented verbosely. With this in mind, it’s easy to understand Agar’s initial selection in the touring party—albeit, after an unremarkable game in Sydney.
So how did Todd Murphy and, later, Matthew Kuhnemann manage to leapfrog Agar in about the same time it took Usain Bolt to cover 100 metres?
Touring Australia selector, Tony Dodemaide struggled to explain:
“It was a close call to pick Murphy over Agar for the first Test. Todd’s come on tremendously, as we know, and he’s been a real find for us.”
And then went on to say, “We just decided that Matthew’s (Kuhnemann) style might be suited to the conditions in Delhi.”
Communicating difficult selection decisions to players is no easy chore, believe me. This situation, though, presents as an absolute minefield.
Getting back to the initial question.
As of right now, my answer is NO. And, I’m sure yours might be too?
It’s hard not to empathise with the cards that have landed in Ashton Agar’s hands. The same hands that were initially trusted with bowling some left arm tweakers, and batting at eight with the intent of lengthening Australia’s batting order, which looked thin on Indian form alone.
Enjoying the read? If you feel like it, I’d love if you’d share this post with your friends! Or, if you received it from a friend, please forward to another.
Here’s the article. I hope you enjoy—I was much younger back then, in body and mind!
The Changing face of selection.. July 2013
The selection of Ashton Agar to play in the first Ashes test at Trent Bridge is testament to the changing environment of professional cricket. The cricket workforce here in Australia is becoming more upwardly mobile, with players choosing to cross borders to further their prospects and state associations more willing to take chances on interstate talent.
There are several examples of this behaviour in this very test match. Ed Cowan trod the well worn path of Sydney grade cricketers to Hobart then to a Baggy Green. Shane Watson initiated the phenomenon, first entering the Academy as a Queenslander, then leaving as a Tasmanian, and now as a Blue Bagger. Phil Hughes, Agar's stoical ally in the record-breaking partnership, sought calmer surroundings in Adelaide after leaving Sydney.
In the case of Ashton Agar, it was the trip across the Nullarbor from Melbourne to Perth that would see the probability of him wearing a baggy green dramatically increase. By heading to Perth on a WACA contract he was now one of approximately 120 professional cricketers in Australia leaving behind the club pool of approximately 1400 playing grade cricket in Australia. Probability, by definition, is "a measure or estimation of how likely it is that something will happen or that a statement is true." So when you do the math, it looks like this:
Stay in Melbourne to play premier cricket at Richmond CC and potentially some Futures League cricket with the VIC's approximately 1:1400 chance of playing for Australia—not attractive odds.
Travel west, and you have a 1:120 chance of playing for Australia—better odds. And if you drill down further into his skill set, he would be, say, 1 of 15 spinners in the country—better odds again.
Elevating yourself out of the club cricket pool is the key to the door opening. It is through no fault of their own that many club cricketers never find the key; it's just the sheer weight of numbers looking for the key that makes it difficult for many to elevate themselves to the next level. I personally coach one prime example at the Melbourne Cricket Club in Andrew Kent, who has 9000 grade runs, 2 premierships, and is 2nd on the all-time scoring list in front of Warwick Armstrong and only behind Warren Ayres. Unfortunately for Kent, he chose to stay home; sadly, no first-class cricket or Baggy Green came his way. So the opportunity to join the WACA's was huge for Ashton Agar—it was an upwardly mobile young man being given the chance to develop by a state association willing to gamble on interstate talent.
We also shouldn't underestimate the complexity of such decisions for a young man who was barely out of his braces. I am a McKinnon resident in suburban Melbourne, observing the Agar family from a distance. It is obvious that they are a close-knit unit, with mother and father supporting all three boys equally, so when the eldest informs them of his opportunity to head west, it would not have been taken lightly around the dining room table.
Head west he did, and the rest is history, albeit with some significant contributing factors. Justin Langer's return to coach the WACA straight from the Australian dressing room was massive. Massive because he would witness firsthand the single most important attribute that a potential international player needs: attitude. Agar had it in spades, and I have no doubt this was relayed through to the Perth cartel of Arthur and Inverarity. Also significant was the injury to Michael Beer, which presented Agar with the opportunity to play and display his full range of skills. From memory, there was a deciding contribution in Adelaide for his new team.
All in all, it was an inspired selection and an equally inspiring performance to date by the young man, made possible by a now more fluid cricket workforce, accepting state associations, and most importantly, the improved probability of selection that Ashton Agar created by finding the key to the door. He played the odds and won.
Happy Friday everyone, and have a great weekend.
