“Agar” was trending on Twitter. Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan admitted even he was cheering for an Aussie. And one respected India-based commentator said it helped him fall in love with cricket all over again.
Yes, 19-year-old Ashton Agar’s 98-run performance on his Test debut brought out all the superlatives, nearly matching the long list of records he set in the first Ashes Test on Thursday.
The clock was ticking a few minutes before midnight and a new day yesterday on Australia’s east coast when Agar fell two runs short of a century.
No matter. The youngster was immediately hailed a hero, featured as the lead item on all breakfast television shows in a country where all-encompassing sporting accomplishments lately have been rare as rain in the Outback.
There was no question that Agar saved the day for Australia at Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
He made the highest Test score by a No. 11 batsman in a record last-wicket stand of 163 with Phillip Hughes (81 not out) as Australia recovered from 117-9 to 280 all out for a first-innings lead of 65. England ended the second day at 80-2 for a lead of 15 runs.
The previous best for a No. 11 was Tino Best’s 95 for West Indies against England last year.
Agar, with his parents John and Sonia cheering from the stands, had barely walked, smiling all the way, to the pavilion before the plaudits began pouring in.
Vaughan, the former opening batsman who captained England in 51 Tests over a five-year period, got caught up in Agar’s incredible batting performance.
“Never ever thought I would say I am disappointed a Aussie got out but I really wanted Ashton Agar to get a 100... (hash)Ashes,” Vaughan tweeted.
Minutes later, veteran Indian commentator Harsha Bhogle, who regularly appears on international TV and radio broadcasts, said he was moved by Agar’s exploits.
“You think you have seen it all and then there comes a moment so fresh, so touching that you fall in love with cricket all over again,” Bhogle tweeted.
Back home, Australian media searching for some glimmer of sporting satisfaction were quick to jump on the Agar bandwagon.
It has been a lean sports year Down Under. A week ago, the Wallabies’ lost to the British and Irish Lions in the third and deciding rugby Test. There have been drug scandals and off-field incidents enveloping its rugby league and Australian Rules codes.
Spin bowler Agar was a surprise selection for the first Test, a fact not lost on Fairfax Media columnist Malcolm Knox.
“Sunshine lit up Trent Bridge on Thursday, intensifying both the colors and the shadows,” Knox wrote. “Agar’s batting, like his selection in the first place, was so unexpected it stole the show.”
The Daily Telegraph in Sydney headlined “Agar’s Ashes debut for the ages,” while Greg Baum, under the headline “An innings beyond imagination,” wrote in The Age in Melbourne: “Michael Clarke must have exhorted his team to watch Ashton Agar play an innings that surely no one will see again.”
Jesper Boqvist on Tuesday scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period as the Florida Panthers, after raising their second straight NHL Stanley Cup banner, opened the defense of the title by beating the Chicago Blackhawks 3-2. Mackie Samoskevich — getting his second assist, the fifth two-point game of his career — chipped the puck toward the goal and Boqvist knocked it out of the air for the lead with 10 minutes, 20 seconds left. A.J. Greer and Carter Verhaeghe also had goals for Florida, who got 17 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky. Frank Nazar had a goal and an assist and Teuvo
World No. 3 Alexander Zverev on Monday said that he was playing “terrible tennis” after he was knocked out of the Shanghai Masters by France’s Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. His exit leaves Novak Djokovic as the tournament’s top-ranked player, increasing the 38-year-old Serb’s chances of winning a record-extending fifth title in the Chinese financial hub. In stifling conditions, world No. 54 Rinderknech came back from a set down to stun an increasingly rattled Zverev into submission. It is the second time the Frenchman has beaten him, after bundling him out of Wimbledon earlier this year. A despondent Zverev told reporters the match had
‘SOMETHING SPECIAL’: Nathan Lukes hit a two-run single and Addison Barger had three of Toronto’s 12 hits as the Blue Jays bounced back After taking down the storied New York Yankees in their own ballpark in their American League Division Series on Wednesday, Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider was ready to revel in the triumph. “Start spreading the news,” Schneider said while popping a bottle of bubbly to set off the Blue Jays’ jubilant celebration inside their Yankee Stadium clubhouse. With the party under way, the familiar lyrics from Frank Sinatra’s version of New York, New York — the Yankees’ long-time victory anthem — sounded in the background as roaring Toronto players sprayed each other with booze in the Bronx. This time, it was their
‘IT’S BASEBALL’: In just the second error to end a post-season series in the MLB, the Phillies reliever fumbled a comebacker and threw to home, despite the signal Eyes red, Orion Kerkering on Thursday received words of support from his Philadelphia Phillies teammates. “Just keep your head up. It’s an honest mistake. Just, it’s baseball,” he remembered hearing. “You’ll be good for a long time to come,” they added. “It’s not my fault, then. We had opportunities to score,” was the message he kept getting. Kerkering made a wild throw past home plate instead of tossing to first after mishandling Andy Pages’ bases-loaded comebacker with two outs in the 11th inning. Pinch-runner Kim Hye-seong scored and the Phillies were eliminated with a 2-1 loss that gave the Los Angeles Dodgers a
RSS