Will had been to the MCG to watch games with his dad before, but walking out from the tunnel and seeing the stadium from the ground was a completely different experience. He stopped for a moment. It was awe-inspiring and just a bit terrifying.
‘What are you waiting for, Will? Get out there!’ barked Darren from behind him. Will started walking again, but he couldn’t stop his eyes from darting around the ground, trying their best to drink every detail. While the stands weren’t even half-full yet – it was only 4.30 pm and the main game didn’t start till eight – there were still a lot of spectators and more were streaming in. Some cheered and applauded as the boys took to the field. It was good to have the home-side advantage, thought Will, who was remembering the way New South Wales had so thoroughly flogged them in the group match.
New South Wales had won the toss and, predictably, elected to bat. Jack had stressed how important it was for their team to bowl and field well. ‘If they get a big score, we’ll struggle to match it against their bowling line-up,’ Jack had instructed as Dan Brocklehurst ran the team through some last-minute warm-up stretches in the players’ change room.
Now, as Will settled into his regular fielding position at short leg, he began to see that Jack was right. If New South Wales did post a big score, he wasn’t sure his team could chase down the runs the way they had in the reduced overs match against Western Australia.
Will’s fears were realised from the first over when the New South Wales openers made their intentions clear with four boundaries. Will watched poor Darren walk head down back to his fielding position. But while the second over from another country Victorian bowler, Joey Romeo, had also been savaged by the run-hungry New South Wales openers, when Darren returned to the northern end, he had a steely look that Will recognised from his own battles at the crease with Killer. He looked angry and determined.
Will got ready at short leg as Darren unleashed a monster of a bouncer. The New South Wales batsman tried to get out of the way but the ball bounced off his glove and into ‘Lil’ Benny Huynh’s waiting hands behind the wicket. The team ran in and congratulated Darren, but he still had that angry determined look in his eyes. Three balls later, he took the wicket of the number-three batsman and the Victorians felt like they were getting on top.
But the feeling didn’t last long.
Toby Gregg, the opener who had bashed the Victorian bowlers around so badly in their last encounter with New South Wales, was still out there doing damage. He skipped away to 42 off 19, despite Victoria’s sharp fielding and Darren’s killer bowling.
On the ninth over, Mike decided it was time to switch to their spin attack.
‘Just keep it tidy; don’t let them push you around,’ advised Mike, looking at Will.
Will gave Mike a quick nod but a shudder rippled through him. He still had nightmarish visions of the mauling he’d received off his first over against New South Wales in the group game. Will tried to push the memory to the back of his mind. No point thinking about that now. Just do what Maxi said … don’t think.
Will moved in and bowled his first delivery, focusing all his energy into getting the ball spinning, and throwing it a little higher for extra flight. It was a good ball, too. It turned a little and drifted through the air, bouncing high off the pitch and up into the batsman’s face, which made it all the more frustrating when Toby Gregg stepped quickly onto the back foot and hooked it for six.
Will turned and walked back to his mark. He didn’t want Toby Gregg to see his face. He didn’t want anyone to see his face. He felt like it might shatter and fall into tiny pieces on the turf.
Not again! I can’t let him smash me around again!
But no matter what he tried, each ball that Will bowled met with the same terrible fate; each was whacked with explosive force to the rope.
This time, Toby Gregg took 32 off Will’s six balls and when the last was bowled, Will felt as if he were out on his feet, like a prize fighter down for the count.
After his one expensive over, Mike pulled Will from the attack. He didn’t bowl again that night but that didn’t stop the onslaught of runs. The New South Wales team was just getting started.
JUST KEEP SWINGING
Will sat, padded up, on the players’ bench, and watched nervously as Shavil and Riley faced off against the intimidating New South Wales pace attack. They needed to score quickly: they were chasing 184 and, with a required run rate of over nine per over, they couldn’t afford to take it easy.
Shavil started positively with a straight drive that gave him three runs and, soon after, a nicely guided edge that beat the slip fielders and raced away to the rope.
‘Come on, Shavil!’ called Will.
But the very next ball bounced up and found the fine edge of Shavil’s bat – then flew straight through to the man at slips. The New South Wales players howled and the umpire raised his finger.
Will stood up slowly, unable to take his eyes off poor Shavil who was still looking back at the slips area trying desperately to somehow take back his loose shot. Finally, he tucked his bat under his arm and headed towards the pavilion.
‘Bad luck, mate,’ said Will when he passed Shavil.
‘Stupid,’ said Shavil, cursing himself. ‘Guess you and Riley will have to save the day this time.’
Will gave Shavil a nod. He swung his bat through the air to loosen up his shoulders and jogged out to the middle of the MCG. This was what he had always dreamed of – playing at one of the best cricket grounds in the world – but all he could think about was the run chase. They were one for 12 in the third over. How were they going to get to 184?
The magic of their victory against Western Australia in the semifinal felt light-years away. Sure, they had been chasing a lot of runs, but Will only had to hit out for six overs. Now, if they were to win, he would have to stick around for a lot longer than that. They would need high scores for all 20 overs.
The first ball of the over came in fast and low and Will had to play it into the ground. Dot ball.
Just keep swinging, Will told himself.
The second ball was another yorker and Will bumped it back into the deck. Dot ball.
Patience, Will. Don’t think about anything else.
Will watched the bowler run in.
Anticipate.
He won’t bowl full again.
He’ll want to mix it up. Maybe drop it in short.
Act!
Will was right. The ball was pitched fast but short. He leapt onto the front foot and launched his bat at the ball. He could tell straightaway that it was going to be a six.
And it was. It was huge. It landed in the lower tier of the grandstand!
The crowd roared to life. They had come to watch the Melbourne Stars take on the Sydney Sixers but watching a local boy take it to a team from New South Wales was great pre-match entertainment.
Still, Will knew he had a long way to go.
Don’t get too far ahead of yourself. Don’t start thinking about it too much. Watch the ball. Anticipate. Act. One ball at a time.
So that’s what he did. Will took on each ball, one at a time. He played each shot as if it were the only shot he had to hit. Sometimes he took a single, just like Shavil had told him to in the semifinal. Most times he managed to find the gaps in the field and, over by over, Will survived and the runs began to pile up.
The problem was that although Will was playing a steady game, his teammates were finding it more difficult. Riley went for 22 and there had been a steady flow of wickets for New South Wales ever since.
When Darren came out to bat, however, Will finally found a stable partner. Darren let Will do the heavy lifting but he kept the strike rotating with quick singles and the occasional boundary before starting to find the rope more often himself. Will couldn’t believe that he and Darren were actually working well together as batting partners, but he stopped himself thinking too much about it and instead chose to trust the partnership.
After the fifteent
h over, with Victoria sitting on a total of 120, Will and Darren met in the middle to talk tactics.
‘We can do this,’ said Will. ‘We just need to lift the run rate a bit more. We still need 64, so if we can get up to 13 runs for the next five, we’ll win it.’
‘No problem,’ said Darren.
And for two overs it wasn’t a problem. The pair put on another 29 and all of sudden victory was in sight. But then Darren got a little too ambitious and tried to smash a six down the ground. Instead, he found the man in the outfield. Will lost his partner and they were eight down with 35 runs still to score. The crowd that had been increasingly vocal throughout the Victorian innings went deathly quiet and the shudder that had rippled through his body earlier now became a tidal wave of worry.
Just keep swinging, Will reminded himself.
PRIDE OF THE STATE
Will watched on as Joey Romeo jogged out to the centre of the MCG to take Darren’s place. Joey was good with the ball but his strike rate with the bat was less impressive. Luckily he and Darren had crossed before he was caught so Will had the strike. Joey looked petrified.
I just need to hit twos, fours or sixes so I can stay on strike, decided Will, then take a single off the last ball so I can face the next over as well. Simple.
Of course, the New South Wales team was determined to get Joey on strike, so they made it as hard as possible for Will to hit out. For the next two deliveries, Will hit well-timed shots straight to fielders and had to send Joey back on both occasions. He didn’t want the New South Wales bowler to have three consecutive balls at Joey. He reasoned that if they went nine wickets down it would make it so much harder, so he tried to be patient – but each dot ball was like a nail in the coffin. If the New South Wales bowlers got too many more, Victoria’s chance of victory would be dead and buried.
Finally, on the fourth ball, Will got a good shot away. He took off like a rocket and turned for the second only to see Joey slip over at the crease. That moment’s delay was all New South Wales needed. The return throw was low and hard and right on target at the batsman’s end. Will and Joey had missed their chance for a second run. Joey would have to see out the over.
Will signalled for Joey to block. Joey nodded but when the New South Wales bowler steamed in and delivered a nasty bouncer, Joey put his body on the line and the ball struck him hard on the elbow. The keeper missed the ball and it rolled away to the fence. Four leg byes. They were down to 30. Will clapped Joey, who smiled awkwardly while rubbing his elbow.
Unfortunately for Joey, the bouncer was just the entree. The next ball was the main course and it ripped through middle stump like a hurricane. Will closed his eyes as the opposition’s cheers of jubilation filled his ears. They had one wicket left: Kurt Mallia, who was even less confident with a bat than Joey was. And they still needed 30 runs with 12 balls in hand.
It’s not going to happen, whispered a dark voice at the back of Will’s head. Will tried to shake it away. Don’t think about it!
The only good news was that Will was on strike. The bad news was he could no longer afford to be choosey about scoring opportunities. He would have to take any runs on offer.
But the new New South Wales bowler wasn’t offering any. They had brought back their spinner for this second-last over and his slow-placed turn was devilishly hard to score off. For the first three balls, Will failed to get a shot away. He looked around the ground but all the gaps he had been so good at spotting throughout the match seemed to have disappeared. Frustrated, he punched a drive through to mid-on and hoped there would be a misfield or an overthrow. There wasn’t. Kurt was on strike.
Will didn’t want to watch, but he had to be ready if Kurt somehow got a single away. Kurt missed the next ball completely and it drifted perilously close to leg stump. Then on the last ball of the over, the second-worst thing that could have happened did. The spinner bowled a wide. He would have to bowl one more. Will and Kurt both dropped their heads simultaneously. One more ball. Will signalled to Kurt to block.
The last ball was dead on target and Kurt did his best to get his bat in the way but the ball struck the top of his pad.
‘Howzat!’ screamed the bowler, as the whole New South Wales team roared in appeal for LBW. Will looked to the umpire. The umpire cocked his head to the side, as if considering what to do, and Will felt his heart leap in his chest.
Slowly the umpire shook his head. Kurt had survived and Will was on strike.
One more over to score 28 runs. Will’s heart sank. It seemed impossible.
‘Too bad you’re not bowling against yourself, then you might have had a chance!’ sang a merry voice from the slips, followed by a chorus of laughs.
Will turned and saw the beaming smile of Toby Gregg, the New South Wales captain who had scored 32 off Will’s one over. He smirked contentedly at Will and Will had no answer but to look away.
Then something occurred to him.
If he can do it, why can’t I? Surely I’m not that bad a bowler – and he got 32. Twenty-eight runs in an over isn’t as hard as 32. I can do it. I just need to swing at every ball and hope for the best.
Determined, Will faced his first ball of the final over. It was a yorker, but Will bounced back on his toes and scooped the ball skyward. It went up and up and up. The New South Welshman in the outfield went back for it. It looked like he would take it easily but right as he got his hands to it, his momentum took him over the rope. Six runs.
The crowd, which had been quiet for the last few overs, roared back to life. It was as if Will’s six had jump-started their hearts.
Twenty-two from five, Will thought. I can do it.
The next ball was low and wide but Will wasn’t going to let that stop him. He swung his bat hard and caught the ball with the toe. It ran away through the off side, beat two fielders and bounced away for four.
The crowd screamed. Will imagined that somewhere in all that noise were the cheers of his mum and dad, all his teammates and Jack – and maybe Zoe, too.
Eighteen from four.
The next ball was wide of off stump again so Will just pretended he was Maxi. He dropped to one knee and reverse swept the ball with all his might. He’d been hoping for at least four. It went for six.
Toby Gregg and the bowler furiously talked tactics. The roar of the crowd was deafening, but Will’s mind was on the team. He didn’t want to let them down now. They were so close.
Twelve from three.
The bowler avoided the off side and jabbed it in down the middle, short and hard, hoping the bouncer would throw Will. And it almost did. Will stuck his head down and swung his bat wildly at the ball. It disappeared into the twilight sky and no one knew where it went until it plummeted back to earth, landing a few metres beyond the rope.
The bowler shook his head and Toby ran in again to counsel him. Will took the time to scan the ground again. The entire crowd was on its feet.
Six from two. I can do it.
Will turned and watched the bowler sprint in. He saw the bowler’s hand roll over and release the ball. He watched as the ball came hurtling towards him like a miniature meteor.
Anticipate.
Yorker. He wants to jam me.
Act!
Will leapt to the front foot before the ball had reached him and swung through the line of the ball.
And just like the third ball he ha d faced, Will knew as soon as he had struck it that it was going all the way for six.
They had won! And with one ball to spare!
All of a sudden, nothing seemed real. It was as if Will’s mind had left his body and was floating up above the stadium. The crowd erupted but the cheers seemed far away. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kurt Mallia running towards him and before he knew it, they were hugging and dancing on the pitch.
Will turned back towards the wicket and saw a familiar face in front of him. It was Toby Gregg, his face white with disbelief. Will walked right over and shook his hand.
‘Good game,’
he said. Toby nodded but his miserable face became a lot more miserable.
Will and Kurt trotted triumphantly back to the pavilion where the whole team was waiting in a guard of honour. Will was being bombarded with back slaps and hair ruffles when he saw Zoe.
‘Willster, that was amazing! I’m so proud of you,’ Zoe yelled over the noise of the crowd. Before Will knew it she had planted a kiss on his cheek.
Will was stunned. But even more stunning was the TV camera crew and sports reporter who had appeared in front of him.
‘I’m standing here with young Will Albright who, after pulling off a stunning victory in the final of the T20 National Youth Shield, is about to become the most talked-about youngster in Victoria. Will, how does it feel to win like that in front of a home crowd?’
Will thought for a moment and then looked at the camera. ‘Unreal!’ he said finally.
‘And where to now, Will?’ asked the reporter.
‘I’m hoping someone’s going to shout me and my team slushies!’ said Will.
The reporter gave Will a strange look but he could tell that Shavil, who was standing close by, knew exactly what Will was talking about. Shavil smiled at Will. It didn’t get any better than this.
GLENN MAXWELL
Nicknames: Maxi
Born: 14 October 1988 in Kew, Victoria
Height: 182 cm
Weight: 74 kg
Batting style: Right-hand bat
Bowling style: Right-arm orthodox
Role: All-rounder
National side: Australia
MAXI’S TOP T20 TIPS FOR OVERCOMING A FORM SLUMP AND CHASING DOWN A TOTAL
Overcoming a form slump
Whether you’re a professional cricketer, a club cricketer or just a casual player, anyone can go through a form slump from time to time. Usually these slumps are psychological rather than physical, although when you’re not scoring runs and your confidence is down, your technique can suffer as well. Here are a few tips to help you overcome that slump and start scoring runs again.
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