Australia has a promising new batting hope, with Western Australia’s Teague Wyllie becoming the youngest player to score a Sheffield Shield century since Ricky Ponting.
And it came on a tricky wicket for batters, with Wyllie’s 104 leading the hosts to a total of 258, and a 78-run lead at stumps on day two of their clash with New South Wales.
Only NSW captain Kurtis Patterson (72 not out) and WA’s Matthew Kelly (47 not out) were able to join the 18-year-old in scoring over 32 runs.
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In the process Wyllie, who was in his third Shield match, became the youngest to ton up at the level since Ricky Ponting in 1992/93.
Wyllie was the only Australian named in the ICC’s most valuable team of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup early this year, topscoring for his country with 278 runs across the tournament.
He made his first class debut in March, becoming the youngest WA first class debutant since Cameron Green, and in his second match at the level helped them win the Shield.
Wyllie was famously part of a viral video when, at 14 years old, he faced a bowling machine at 160 km/h.
His sister Georgia also earned a WA state contract as a teenager.
“If I had to pick one (young gun to watch this year), we saw the emergence of Teague Wyllie at the back-end of last summer,” WA coach Adam Voges told Code Sports.
“He’s quite a big guy, he’s got a physical presence when he’s at the crease. But technically he’s really solid. He’s been an opening batter pretty much all of his career, so technically he’s sound.
“I think it’s just his genuine desire to want to bat and bat for long periods of time (that excites Voges). In today’s game, that’s not something you (see) all the time but that’s something he’s got that in spades.”
