A youngster might assist some of Australia’s modern greats in crossing items off their bucket lists.
Todd Murphy walks in, long sleeves cinched, top button clasped,
Moeen Ali was batting on one leg when he arched his bat and upper-cut Pat Cummins for four over Alex Carey’s head, and Australia appeared to have squandered their chance to seize command of the fifth Test.
Cummins had finally won his first toss of the series and had asked England to bat first under dense cloud cover, with the floodlights switched on shortly after lunch. Australia had reduced England to 73 for 3 but had dropped three catches and wasted a run-out opportunity; Harry Brook and Moeen had put on a century-run stand in 17 overs.
Todd Murphy walks in, long sleeves cinched, top button clasped, and an up-turned collar drooping down. Murphy, 22, is a boy in a man’s world, the youngest player in this Australian XI by seven years. He’s played as many Tests as Sheffield Shield games (six of each), and he’s been Victoria’s second spinner in the majority of them.
But here he was, standing at the Vauxhall End, attempting to rob a wicket for a group of teammates who were in a completely different stage of life than him. This Australia team will be nearly completely regenerated before its next tour here in four years, and these five days are about securing a legacy for the majority of them. Murphy is still on the move.
His first ball was a little short, and Brook smashed it through point to get off strike. His second attempt was significantly shorter. Moeen rocked back and pulled him away for four through midwicket. Cummins instructed the short leg to move to midwicket, thinking Murphy had already highlighted the reason for his non-selection in Manchester the week before.
Murphy’s following ball, however, was more daring: much fuller and drifting in with the around-the-wicket angle. It was rapid (58 mph/93 kph) and had just enough drop to sneak underneath Moeen’s bat as he swung furiously, lining up a swipe into the leg side.
Murphy hardly rejoiced, his face set as if he were still angry at himself for the previous ball. Perhaps he was also aware of what was to come: Moeen’s dismissal brought in Ben Stokes at No. 6, the man who smashed him for five sixes at Headingley before holing out to long-on.
Despite this, Murphy performed admirably against Stokes, tossing the ball high and giving up only two singles in 11 balls. When Stokes skipped out of his crease, he retaliated by drawing his length back and beating him on the cut.
After Stokes fell, he was yanked out of the attack, lost his off stump to Mitchell Starc while attempting to relieve the scoring pressure by spinning him into the leg side, then returned for a token over before tea.
After the break, Murphy’s second ball was full and flighted, and Mark Wood scythed it over point for four. It was one of two boundaries he gave up, and he replied by getting a wicket with his next ball, precisely as he did after lunch: Wood cleared his front leg, and Murphy’s offbreak slammed through the top of his middle stump.
This time, there was a brief celebration, with fans pounding the air and yelling, “Yeah! Come on!” before giving David Warner, 14 years his senior, a high-five. Wood’s partnership with Chris Woakes was worth 49 runs, the third-highest in England’s innings; Murphy broke two of the three significant stands.
He concluded his six overs with two for 22—and it should have been three for him but for a dropped caught-and-bowled chance when Woakes chipped one back to him. Murphy had 17 wickets at 24.94 in his first five-and-a-half Tests after being sent on away tours to India and England.
“Since he started his Test career, he’s been really good for us, through India,” Starc added. “He didn’t play much at Headingley; [he was] used sparingly there, but he’s come back and played a role today.” He’ll learn from those experiences, his first Ashes tour following his first Indian tour.”
Murphy has played a supporting role in this series, and it is evident that Cummins does not trust him as much as he does Nathan Lyon. And how could he possibly be expected to? Lyon has played 122 Tests, whereas Murphy is playing his 14th first-class match.
“Obviously, coming in and trying to fill Nathan’s boots is a big deal as it is,” Starc remarked. “Obviously, Nathan has bowled quite well here in the past; he did in the Test final.” Todd has taken advantage of that and bowled some really brilliant overs today, picking up a couple of crucial wickets. We expect him to play another inning in the second.”
Murphy, according to Starc, is “going to be a quality spinner for us for a long time,” and Australia hopes he can be Lyon’s long-term replacement. Whether that is the case or not, he is playing a role well enough to let some of Australia’s current greats cross one more item off their bucket lists.
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