Four years after being dropped from the Test side mid-way through the Ashes due to a string of underwhelming performances, Josh Hazlewood has returned to enemy territory with venom and vengeance, finally fulfilling his long-anticipated promise that once threatened to go unfulfilled, report agencies.
After having finally fought through all the injury troubles and having gotten back to full fitness, Josh Hazlewood lived a fast bowler’s dream in 2014. His bowling, his action and his perfection drew inevitable Glenn McGrath comparisons and on his debut at the Gabba, a then 23-year-old Hazlewood bowled his side to victory against India by claiming a 5-wicket haul in his first ever innings. A successful tour of the Caribbean followed the home triumph against India.
Everything was in place. It felt like the stars were aligned. His swing, his pace and his control were tailor-made for English conditions and with him being the McGrath incarnate, it felt inevitable that he was going to bring the Ashes home in 2015. Perhaps, the expectations on the shoulders of a boy who had just played 5 Tests prior to his Ashes debut were too much. And so, he succumbed. He succumbed aiming for glory, trying to be too full and too cute often in search of wickets, in the process letting the batsmen off the leash at the wrong time. A World Cup winners’ medal, 150+ Test scalps and an Ashes to his name and yet, Hazlewood’s achievements have always gone under the rada. Cue the 2019 Ashes. The first Test of the series at Edgbaston and Hazlewood was dropped in favour of Peter Siddle. But yet, he knew that a chance for him was always round the corner and all he had to do was keep knocking on the door. Knock on the door he did in the tour match against Worcestershire and his call was finally answered as he was picked for Lord’s.
Since then, the Hazlewood that we’ve been seeing is not the Hazlewood of the old times. Hungrier and more determined than ever before, the New South Welshman looks like he’s on a one-man mission to help his country retain the urn. While the Hazlewood of old would have crumbled and gotten demoralized after a wicket-less spell, his version 2.0 instead responded with a 5-wicket haul, skittling out the opposition for 67 runs. From being the kid who wanted the skipper to take the ball away from him in 2015 to the man who is now demanding the ball from the captain in times of need, the speedster’s turnaround has been nothing short of remarkable. Hazlewood is no more a rookie, but now a ringmaster that everyone else looks up to.
His nine-wicket gig at Headingley and his late burst on Day 3 at Old Trafford are just a reflection of who he has become and what he is going to be. For Hazlewood, failure is no more an option.
Trundling in mediocrity and gliding in the glory of his teammates are a thing of the past too, as now he knows it’s time to write a chapter of his own in the history books.
Josh Hazlewood is no more the sidekick to Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins’ party, for he’s now a leader amongst men who’s ready to take his game to the next level.
