Ashton Agar

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Ashton Agar

Agar playing for Australia against England in the 1st Ashes Test at Trent Bridge on 12th July 2013.
Personal information
Full name Ashton Charles Agar
Born (1993-10-14) 14 October 1993
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Height 187 cm
Batting style Left-handed
Bowling style Slow left-arm orthodox
Role All-rounder
International information
National side
  • Australia
Test debut (cap 434) 10 July 2013 v England
Last Test 18 July 2013 v England
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
2013 Western Australia
2013–2014 Perth Scorchers
Career statistics
Competition Test FC LA T20
Matches 2 19 4 5
Runs scored 130 628 12 57
Batting average 32.50 27.30 6.00 14.25
100s/50s 0/1 0/5 0/0 0/0
Top score 98 98 10 35
Balls bowled 504 3,542 244 26
Wickets 2 48 6 0
Bowling average 124.00 39.47 27.83 n/a
5 wickets in innings 0 1 0 0
10 wickets in match 0 0 n/a n/a
Best bowling 2/82 5/65 3/51 0/6
Catches/stumpings 0/– 8/– 1/– 0/–
Source: CricketArchive, 3 January 2014

Ashton Charles Agar (born 14 October 1993) is an Australian international cricketer contracted domestically to Western Australia and the Perth Scorchers. From Melbourne, Agar represented Victoria at underage level, as well as playing a number of matches for the Australian under-19 cricket team. Owing to a lack of opportunities in Victoria, he transferred to play for Western Australia prior to the 2012–13 season, making his Sheffield Shield debut in early January 2013. A left-arm orthodox spinner and capable lower-order batsman, Agar was subsequently called up for Australia's 2012–13 tour of India, and went on to tour England and Ireland with Australia A. Although originally not selected in the touring squad, he made his Test debut for Australia in the first Test of the 2013 Ashes series. Scoring 98 runs batting eleventh in Australia's first innings, Agar broke several Test records on debut, including highest score by a number eleven batsman and highest partnership for the tenth wicket (with Phillip Hughes). Agar was dropped from the team after the second Test of the series.

Early life and domestic career

Agar was born in Melbourne,[1] to a Sri Lankan mother and an Australian father,[2][3] and attended Melbourne's De La Salle College, graduating in 2011.[4][5] He represented Victoria at both under-17 and under-19 level.[6] After good form at the 2010–11 National Under-17 Championships, where he took 16 wickets at an average of 11.75 bowling left-arm orthodox spin,[7] he was selected to play for the Australian under-19s for a series against the West Indies under-19s in the United Arab Emirates. Making his debut at the age of 17, Agar went on to play one under-19 Test and ten under-19 One Day International (ODI) matches for Australia.[8] At the 2012 Under-19 World Cup, he was named in the squad as Australia's second spinner behind Ashton Turner,[9][10] but did not play a match at the tournament.[11]

Having failed to gain selection at senior level for Victoria, Agar moved to Western Australia for the 2012–13 season, where he was awarded a contract with the Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA).[12][13] He made his first-class debut for Western Australia in a Sheffield Shield match against New South Wales in January 2013, replacing the injured Michael Beer as the side's spinner.[14] In his second Shield match, early the following month, he scored 53 runs in Western Australia's second innings, putting on a state Sheffield Shield record partnership of 94 runs for the tenth wicket with Michael Hogan (43*).[15] Agar made his List A debut for Western Australia in the limited-overs Ryobi One-Day Cup in late January,[16] and took five wickets from his two matches,[17] with his best figures 3/51 against Queensland.[18]

In February 2013, Agar was a late inclusion in the Australian squad for the 2012–13 tour of India,[19] and played a single match on tour, taking 3/107 against India A.[20] He finished the Sheffield Shield season with 19 wickets from five matches,[21] including a five-wicket haul, 5/65, taken against South Australia in early March.[22] In the same match, Agar was again involved in a substantial last-wicket partnership with Michael Hogan, with the pair adding 68 not out to enable Western Australia to win by one wicket.[23] In his previous match, against Tasmania, he had scored 71 not out in Western Australia's fourth innings of 8/351, helping the team win by two wickets,[24] and he finished the season with 229 runs at an average of 32.71, finishing third in the team's batting averages.[25] At WACA district level, Agar plays for University,[26] having previously played for the Richmond Cricket Club in Victorian Premier Cricket.[27]

International career

Agar was selected to tour England, Scotland, and Ireland with Australia A in June 2013.[28][29] Along with Fawad Ahmed, a Pakistani refugee who was granted Australian citizenship in early July 2013, he was generally considered to be competing for a final position in Australia's squad for the 2013 Ashes series in England.[30] A spot in the squad for a second spinner, behind Nathan Lyon, had been kept open to be given to one of the two spinners, based on form in the lead-up to the tour.[31] Following his good form for Australia A, Agar was named to make his Test debut in the first Test of the series (played at Trent Bridge, Nottingham), replacing Lyon in the side from the previous tour.[32] Aged 19 years and 269 days, he became the twelfth-youngest Australian Test player,[33] as well as the youngest Australian since Archie Jackson (during the 1928–29 series) to make his Test debut in the Ashes.[34] On debut, he scored 98 runs from 101 balls batting eleventh in Australia's first innings, breaking several Test records, including first player to ever score a half-century as a number eleven batsman on debut, highest score by a number eleven batsman, and, with Phillip Hughes, highest partnership (163 runs) for the tenth wicket.[35][36]

Agar played in the first two Tests of the series, and despite his debut batting performance, had very limited success with the ball, taking 0-24, 2-82, 0-44 and 0-98 for a bowling average of 124, subsequently being dropped from the team for the third and fourth Tests, and returned home due to illness ahead of the final Test.[37] Nathan Lyon took his place for the final three tests and bowled considerably better, despite Australia losing the series 3-0.

References

  1. ↑ Ashton Agar profile – Cricket Australia. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  2. ↑ Ali Martin (2013). Just who is Ashton Agar? – The Sun. Published 10 July 2013. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
  3. ↑ Ashton Agar: proud to be of Sri Lankan heritage – The Sunday Times. Published 20 May 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  4. ↑ Congratulations Ashton Agar! – De La Salle College. Published 16 July 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  5. ↑ 11 things you may not know about Ashton Agar - Herald Sun Published 12 July 2013. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  6. ↑ Miscellaneous matches played by Ashton Agar (34) – CricketArchive. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  7. ↑ Bowling in Australian Under-17 Championships 2010/11 (ordered by average) – CricketArchive. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  8. ↑ Ashton Agar profile – CricketArchive. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  9. ↑ Ashton Agar player profile and statistics – ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  10. ↑ Australia name U-19 World Cup squad – ESPNcricinfo. Published 3 July 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  11. ↑ Bowling for Australia under-19s at ICC Under-19 World Cup 2012 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  12. ↑ 2012-13 Warriors Squad & Rookies Announced – Western Australian Cricket Association. Published 4 July 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  13. ↑ Warriors add unknown spinner Ashton Agar to 17-man playing squad – Herald Sun. Published 4 July 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  14. ↑ Injured Beer in doubt for India tour – ESPNcricinfo. Published 22 January 2013. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  15. ↑ Bulls face huge task as Western Australia dominates Sheffield Shield clash at Gabba – Herald Sun. Published 7 February 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2013.
  16. ↑ List A matches played by Ashton Agar (2) – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  17. ↑ Bowling for Western Australia in Ryobi One-Day Cup 2012/13 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  18. ↑ Queensland v Western Australia, Ryobi One-Day Cup 2012/13] – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  19. ↑ Daniel Brettig (2013). Ashton Agar in frame for India Tests – ESPNcricinfo. Published 15 February 2013.
  20. ↑ First-class matches played by Ashton Agar (11) – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  21. ↑ Bowling for Western Australia in Sheffield Shield 2012/13 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  22. ↑ South Australia v Western Australia, Sheffield Shield 2012/13 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  23. ↑ Christian Mammone (2013). Hogan, Agar clinch famous WA victory – Cricket Australia. Published 10 March 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  24. ↑ Warriors complete stirring comeback – ESPNcricinfo. Published 24 February 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  25. ↑ Batting and fielding for Western Australia in Sheffield Shield 2012/13 – CricketArchive. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  26. ↑ WA Begin U19s State Champs On Monday – Western Australian Cricket Association. Published 6 January 2013. Retrieved 24 January 2013.
  27. ↑ Ashton Agar profile – MyCricket. Retrieved 24 January 2013..
  28. ↑ Australia A Tour to the UK – Cricket Australia. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  29. ↑ Megan Hustwaite (2013). Ashton Agar selected in Australia A team to tour British Isles in June – Herald Sun. Published 24 April 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  30. ↑ Brydon Coverdale (2013). Ahmed, Agar "Ashes contenders": Inverarity – ESPNcricinfo. Published 19 June 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  31. ↑ Ashton Agar, Fawad Ahmed in line for Ashes call: Nathan Lyon – The Australian. Published 8 May 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  32. ↑ Daniel Brettig (2013). Teenage Ashton Agar handed shock debut – ESPNcricinfo. Published 10 July 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  33. ↑ Smith, Wayne (2013). Teenage spinner Ashton Agar gets shock Ashes call – The Australian. Published 10 July 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  34. ↑ Youngest players on debut for Australia in Test matches – CricketArchive. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
  35. ↑ Ashton Agar claims a place in Ashes history – The Australian. Published 12 July 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  36. ↑ Malcolm Conn (2013). Ashes: Teenage debutant Ashton Agar scores 98 to swing momentum of first Ashes Test back in Australia's favour – Herald Sun. Published 12 July 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2013.
  37. ↑ Reuters report, 22 August

External links

Perth Scorchers – current squad
Western Australia – current squad
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