Nathan McSweeney captained Xavier Bartlett in “pretty much every team I’ve played in”, stretching from their junior representative exploits to the Brisbane Heat.
Now, as Australia’s new opening batsman prepares to make his debut against India, the paceman declared the makings of a Test star were evident back in those childhood days.
McSweeney’s career never took off from Queensland – limited to five Sheffield Shield appearances before embarking for Adelaide, where he became a staple for South Australia at No.3.
Nathan McSweeney will earn his Test debut in the first clash against India.Credit: Getty Images
And Bartlett believes that decision of “great courage” demonstrated his resolve, and why he was tailor-made for cricket’s greatest stage.
“Every year he’s gotten better and added a new dimension to his game,” Bartlett said.
“He’s out of position, but … he always preps with a new ball. Every time I bowl to him, I try and grab a new one to give myself a chance.
“He’s my best mate, and to see his journey from when we were 11 or 12 to now, it’s unbelievable.”
When Cameron Green’s injury enabled Steve Smith’s experiment atop of the order to end, no opening batsman emphatically raised their hand until it was too late.
Queensland’s Matthew Renshaw overcame a form slump to strike 120 against Tasmania on Sunday, following Jake Weatherald’s 186.
Big chance: New Australian Test opener Nathan McSweeney.Credit: Getty Images
Marcus Harris then guided Victoria to victory against Western Australia – scoring 47 and an unbeaten 56, his best performance since the opening round (143 and 52).
But when there was selection pressure, they failed to respond.
McSweeney did – plundering 457 runs across four matches – and convinced selectors to pick the best available batsman, regardless of their traditional role.
“Nathan doesn’t have to do anything different,” McSweeney’s opening partner, Usman Khawaja, said.
“Something Nathan has done really well is he’s been able to handle the pressure at Shield level, and score runs consistently from a young age.
“When you look at Nathan, his demeanour and the way he plays, you feel over a long period of time this guy will be able to handle the scrutiny and pressure of Test cricket.”
McSweeney will seek to become the long-term replacement for David Warner, albeit with a contrasting style.
Warner’s brand enabled Australia to attack from ball one – his first-class strike rate (70.76) dwarfing McSweeney (41.92) and Khawaja (50.10). The aggressive mentality has been replicated by Indian openers Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal, and England in their ‘Bazball’ era.
But Khawaja dismissed suggestions a slower approach would hold Australia back.
“I don’t know where this myth started where you need someone to score really fast to do well,” Khawaja said.
“We didn’t have one Test match go into five days [last season]. Opening is as much about scoring runs as it is being able to absorb in that time.”
Usman Khawaja
“Davey was special … he’d sometimes get 100 runs off 100 balls, but he didn’t do that every time – he was setting a platform for the guys later to come in and score runs.
“Nathan does that really well. He can score runs, but he can also bat time, and they’re really important facets to have if you want to set games up to win.”
