by “He’s got country boy hands, strong fingers, the ball looks completely at home in them,” says John Davison, aka the Spin Whisperer, the pleasure to be heard in his plain Burr Queensland.
“It’s a testament to his action and the work he’s done over the years, he doesn’t put too much pressure on his back or knees, he could go on forever,” he says with a laugh. It’s a statement that will frighten heroes the world over and have the game’s great bowlers looking over their shoulders. Nathan Lyon has just taken his 500th (and 501st) Test wicket and doesn’t look like he’ll be stopping anytime soon.
The Lyon goal and its position within the game will be in the spotlight in the coming days and weeks, the highlight of Pakistan’s Faheem Ashraf in Perth, pinned lbw in classic Lyon fashion, will certainly speak for his origins and his future.
Related: Mind and heart: how Nathan Lyon found the key to quietly turning around Australia’s fortunes
It is some story. Lyon is a shy country kid from the town of Young in the South Western Slopes – the “Cherry Capital of Australia”. From playing against his brother, Brendan, in the backyard, his journey took him to face adults twice his size in club games, moving as a teenager to play representative cricket in Canberra and then on to Adelaide and a period often mentioned. on custodial (groundsman) duties at the Adelaide Oval while turning out in nearby Prospect Grade cricket.
That led to a keen eye being shown in the seeding stage of the Big Bash and a handful of Sheffield Shield matches saw him included in the Australian Test team in 2011 when he took a wicket with his first ball. Kumar Sangakkara Free Download. Twelve years and 500 Test wickets later, only Warne and McGrath stand above him in the wicket-taking list for his country.
“It’s scary because he’s getting better,” says Davison, “And he’s playing a lot of his Test cricket instead [Australia] that’s brutal for the finger rotator.”
Davison first came across Lyon when the former was working on a spin program for Cricket Australia, traveling around the states to spot new talent. In Canberra he came across a skinny 18-year-old who was “bowling around himself and he wasn’t that great”. They have worked together on and off ever since. Davison was appointed as the spin coach of the Australian men’s team in 2013-14 and had the specific remit of mentoring Lyon.
Lyon called Davison “the best spin coach in the world”, adding: “Davo is the only person I really trust … I have a great relationship with him. He knows my technique inside out and is the one who can come up and give me honest feedback when I need it.”
Today, it is a less formal but still fruitful relationship. A little over three weeks ago, on 499 Test wickets, Lyon called a session before the Perth Test against Pakistan. “He flicks me a text and usually he comes to Brisbane but this time I went down to Sydney,” says Davison. “He wasn’t bowling as regularly because of the calf injury in the Ashes so we worked on getting some things back on the feel – wrist position, getting on top of the ball, things like that.
“It doesn’t happen as often as it used to because he’s on top of his game but we still have these checks. I don’t know if it’s for me or for him … but it’s always good, and it’s heartwarming after all this time.”
Davison has been there for a long time – the self-doubt and pressure he faced as he sought the role of No. 1 Test spinner. lack of second-innings efficiency.
It came as no surprise to Davison that Lyon came through these difficult times, achieved scrutiny and began to deliver consistently at the highest level. “He’s so hungry, he wants to improve all the time. He was just telling me the other day about going to play county cricket in Lancashire next year and how he wants to play in all the competitions and improve his white ball skills. I have no doubt that it will keep getting better.”
As a player, Davison is perhaps best remembered for scoring 67 balls for Canada against the West Indies at Centurion in 2003, the fastest World Cup debut at the time. He was also a cunning spinner who often opened the bowling in one-day internationals, memorably taking 17 wickets in Canada’s first-class match in over 50 years (in 2004) to chalk up (at the time) is best. first-class bowling figures (at the time) since Jim Laker’s 19-wicket haul against Australia at Old Trafford in 1956.
Davison, who is now 53 years old, is in demand as a private super coach; He recently worked with Aussie leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson and is passionate about discovering new talent in Queensland and beyond. He sports a magnificent gray flecked beard in the mold of WG Grace or Charles Darwin but it is revolution rather than evolution that makes his whiskers turn.
“I’ve spent over 15 years traveling around the country testing spin balls” he says, “and the Trackman company has created a piece of technology specifically designed to measure the spin imparted to a cricket ball. If a finger spinner can get more than 2,000 RPM (revolutions per minute) on the ball then I start to get excited. If it’s over 2,200 RPM, that’s almost a different ball game.”
The inevitable question is – how does Lyon fare? “It’s on top of the tree. It operates between 2,200 and 2,400 RPM. No one I’ve come across has really come close to that as a finger spinner.”
Lyon is 62 Test scores behind Glenn McGrath on the all-time list; moreover Anil Kumble is the next spinner above him – a distant 118 wickets. A quick look at his career along with his fitness record and his frequent desire to improve suggests that he could surpass both with a few more years of sticking. Davison agrees: “Nathan is reaping the rewards now. He has a great pace attack around him and has all the experience. He’s a well-oiled machine with so much cricket left in him, if he stays on the field the next few years could be his most successful yet.”
