There have been several moments in cricket history where a cricketer has set the bar high and braved injuries to turn the time for their team. Even though, it did not end in the team's win, they managed to delay the inevitable and earned respect from the spectators and the opposition. Australia's veteran all-rounder Ashton Agar who had an AC joint injury in his left shoulder walked out to bat for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield match against Victoria in Melbourne.
Even if it was for just five balls, he helped add Western Australia add 15 runs to the target. Agar looked to stay in the middle whereas centurion Joel Curtis scored quickly.
The first ball he faced was from off-spinner Todd Murphy. He held the bat with his right hand and managed to defend it towards the off side which was reminiscent of former South Africa captain Graeme Smith. Fast bowler Xavier A Crone targetted Agar's body. He took two blows to his body, ducked a bouncer like Cheteshwar Pujara did on his last tour but could not fend off a yorker. Agar became Crone's only victim in the innings as Western Australia were bowled out for 325.
Rocchiccioli's hat-trick in vain
On the other end, wicketkeeper-batter Curtis remained unbeaten for 119 from 239 balls. Western Australia set a target of 120 for Victoria. Corey Rocchiccioli bagged two wickets to bag a rare hat-trick (including a wicket in the first innings) but Marcus Harris and skipper Peter Handscomb's unbeaten half-centuries helped Victoria chase down the target in 23.2 overs and win by eight wickets.
Out-of-favour Agar
Agar will not feature in Western Australia's next clash of the season. They will go up against South Australia in a day-night pink-ball contest at Adelaide Oval starting November 23.
The spin-bowling all-rounder has not played a Test since December 2023. He was picked in the squad for Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in India last year but did not play a single game.
