New Delhi, Feb 6 Shane, the father of Australia’s newest Test debutant Cooper Connolly, said his son would approach this huge occasion in Galle without wondering what would happen in the ongoing second game against Sri Lanka.
At the Galle International Cricket Stadium, Connolly received Baggy Green number 471 from former batter Simon Katich and replaced off-spinner Todd Murphy in Australia’s playing eleven. Connolly, the spin-bowling allrounder, is yet to take a wicket in four first-class appearances, and was surrounded by his parents Shane and Donna for the special moment in his cricketing career.
Shane himself was a former player and coach with WA Premier Cricket club Scarborough, the place from where Cooper rose to make his debut for Australia for all formats since September last year, with the Test debut completing his meteoric rise.
“I like to think he’ll play how he always plays and take the game on and be positive. He won’t die wondering. Seeing your son get presented a Baggy Green, by one of WA’s greats in Simon Katich... it’s unreal. Sensational,” said Shane on Channel Seven on Thursday.
Donna, Cooper’s mother, said her son getting his debut Test cap is just the reward for someone who had set his sights on playing for Australia as a young kid. “He used to always be with a bat and a ball.”
“It didn’t matter where he was, he’d be getting throwdowns from people. He used to always say he wanted to play Test cricket... (from) probably around 6, 7 or 8. We’re really proud of him.
Cooper also becomes the fifth player to debut for Australia since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series began after Nathan McSweeney, Sam Konstas, Beau Webster and Josh Inglis. "From what I've seen in the nets, he bowls some really good balls. He was pretty consistent where he was bowling in Dubai and in the nets here, and that's kind of all you've got to do in these conditions.
"Just try and bowl as many good balls in a good area, and just let the conditions take over. I think he's only bowled (16) first-class overs back in Australia but it's entirely different the way you bowl (here), and the way he does bowl and the way it comes out suits him quite nicely.
"It's another batter who bowls more than handy spin and spins the same way as (fellow left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann," Steve Smith, stand-in captain, was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au ahead of the match.
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