Ben McDermott ready for Big Bash, having rediscovered sense of enjoyment

SAM DALLING: It is refreshing to hear McDermott speak about the importance of friendship. The modern game offers riches and glory like never before. And so, remembering why you play the game is a vital attribute

“England are such a powerhouse short-form team,” says Ben McDermott. In decades gone by, such a concession would rarely have been uttered by an Australian mouth. As times have changed, does that remain a tough thing to admit, though?

“Not at all,” he laughs. “I really enjoy watching them play. They are great to watch when they are going well. The freedom that Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy play with is spectacular. I have always loved Jos Buttler too. I am trying to model my game on him actually.”

McDermott is talking in response to a question about the English invasion of the Big Bash.

With Australia’s Test giants away doing battle with India for a decent chunk of the tournament, the number of overseas slots per team has been upped to three. His Hobart Hurricanes side have five on the books to juggle, including Dawid Malan, the world’s top-ranked T20I batsman, and Will Jacks.

Colin Ingram, Keemo Paul and Nepalese leg-spinner Sandeep Lamichhane are due to join them, although there is some doubt over the latter’s involvement after a positive Covid-19 test. McDermott cannot wait to have Malan and Jacks on board.

“As it sits, you can’t get a better player in T20 cricket,” he says of Malan. “He is ranked No.1 in the world and is up there for a reason. I am really excited for him to come. Hopefully he can do it for us. We have five really strong overseas players and of course can only play three and so there will be some players sitting on the sidelines.”

Jacks will be a less familiar name to the Australian public, having earned his maiden Big Bash stint thanks to an impressive season for Surrey.

He helped himself to 309 runs and his handy off-spin brought him 13 wickets as his side reached the final. More impressive though was his economy rate of 6.46, achieved largely in the powerplay overs.

^{McDermott will represent Hobart Hurricanes in their Big Bash campaign}

McDermott, who will turn out for Derbyshire next season, has come across Jacks before and is excited to get reacquainted.

“I spent a little bit of time with [Michael di Venuto] at Surrey when I was playing club cricket at East Mosely and met Will there,” he explains. “We played at Molesey and I reckon he got 96 off about 30 balls. It was ridiculous – he is such a clean striker of the ball. It was a one-dayer so he came out and just started teeing off. It was cool to watch. I am looking forward to seeing him again and seeing how he goes in the Big Bash. It is a different pressure, but I reckon he will be able to handle it fine. He has scored a lot of runs for Surrey this summer.”

Heading into the tournament’s 10th edition, Hurricanes are yet to lift the trophy. Twice they have been beaten finalists, while two seasons ago they topped the group only to fall short in the knockout stages.

There is much to be said about peaking at the right time in T20, with the spoils tending to go to those that come good later in the tournament. And McDermott is hopeful his side can taste victory this time around.

“Tournament-style cricket is all about momentum. You don’t want to peak too early. We did that a couple of years ago – we didn’t lose a game for ages but then didn’t perform in the finals. We had just sort of spent all our chips.

“There is a wealth of experience in the squad this year and we have got to use that to our advantage. We have a lot of young players as well, which I reckon is really exciting. A key to a good list is getting your big guns firing and your less experienced players doing well at the same time. It is about putting it together and if we do that at the right time, we will be pretty dangerous.”

Matthew Wade is the team’s designated skipper but is set to miss the majority of the tournament due to international commitments, as will Tim Paine.

The vastly experienced George Bailey has called time on his career and that could mean McDermott is asked to step up to the plate to lead the side again – a role he performed at times last season.

^{A family affair: brother Alister (left) and father Craig (right) both enjoyed successful careers}

A hot topic over the last week or so has been the use of analysts during the course of games, with England’s Nathan Leamon seen communicating through coded cards to Eoin Morgan during the recent T20I series against South Africa. McDermott’s view is crystal clear.

“I think it is completely within the rights of the game,” he says. “When I was captain last year, we went through the whole opposition batting line before the game – what their team might potentially be, what we need to do with that particular batter.

“We sit down and have hourlong meetings and I don’t really see the difference in analysts getting involved and saying: ‘This is what the stats say’ during the game. Out there, Eoin Morgan has to go off his gut feeling and that is what he is really good at.”

Nearly four years have passed since McDermott announced himself to the cricketing world in spectacular fashion. In just his second Big Bash outing for Hobart in a must-win game, he smashed 114 off just 52 balls, helping them reach a 223-run victory target.

It was some turnaround for the man deemed surplus to requirements by Queensland just two years earlier. Now established in all formats in Tasmania, McDermott is able to reflect with gratitude on his adversity.

“Obviously, it wasn’t the first choice. It wasn’t nice to lose my contract at 19, and to pick up your life and move away from family at such a young age was pretty tough. But it has worked out nicely. It has been a blessing in disguise really. It is an awesome place to play and I have absolutely loved it. I have made some really good mates down here and I am loving it.”

That hundred triggered a sharp rise. By the end of 2018, he had debuted for Australia in T20 cricket, getting off to the perfect start by hitting the winning runs against the United Arab Emirates.

"You need to be playing for your friendships and for your mates. You need to play to enjoy yourself and whatever else happens is a bonus, I reckon"

But while he featured 12 times over the following year, that first big knock eluded him and he lost his spot at the back end of 2019. Naturally, he wants to return to the pinnacle but is happy to let nature run its course this time around.

“I played a few games for Australia and got really excited about it. I thought this is a chance to put my name up there and get into those other leagues. I probably just put a bit too much pressure on myself to be honest.

“You are never going to knock down playing for Australia – it is always good, but it is a different sort of pressure. It wasn’t like anything I have ever experienced before. At the start you are thinking: ‘Oh yeah, this is awesome, this is where I want to be,’ but after a few it starts to almost be a burden if you don’t do well.

“You are thinking: ‘I need to score runs, I need to score runs,’ and you lose sight of what you are actually playing for. Then when you go back and play domestic cricket you are still thinking about how to play for Australia. That is not a good head space to be in. You need to be playing for your friendships and with your mates. You need to play to enjoy yourself and whatever else happens is a bonus, I reckon.”

It is refreshing to hear McDermott speak about the importance of friendship. The modern game offers riches and glory like never before. And so, remembering why you play the game is a vital attribute.

For McDermott, there is no starker reminder than Billy Stanlake, a lifelong pal who was there the first time he stepped onto a cricket pitch and then again when he made his Australia bow.

“That is one thing that I will look back on at the end of my career and think: ‘Oh wow, that is pretty awesome,’” he says. “We both grew up on the Gold Coast, and to start playing the game with someone and then to also play with them when I made my debut at the top level was special.

“Cricket is all about playing together and enjoying everyone else’s successes. At the end of the day, it is a team sport and you can’t dwell too much on when you fail. When you think about things too much, it is going to be a long day. You need to enjoy your teammates’ successes and the best way to do that is to have some really good friends. Then it is easy.”

^{McDermott has signed to play for Derbyshire next summer}

Cricket was always going to be McDermott’s calling: the sport courses through his family’s veins.

Father Craig is a recent inductee into Australia’s cricketing hall of fame, having enjoyed an international career that yielded 494 wickets despite being punctuated by injury.

And older brother Alister was a quick bowler of great promise, earning call-ups to the national squad back in 2012 before being forced to retire a few months back at the age of 29.

“He was a bit of a genius with the old taped-up tennis ball in the front yard,” McDermott recalls. “That was good practice, that is for sure. I would rather face dad than Alistair when he was purring. Dad has lost a bit of pace! A few knee constructions meant he was actually quite nice to face!

“He was very much in line to represent Australia: he went on tour, had an IPL replacement gig and was going really well at one stage. I am not sure what happened but we both lost our Queensland contracts at the same time, but he found love and so wanted to stay at home.

“He got another chance a few years ago but injuries got in the way. In the end, we don’t really know what was wrong with his back but it was causing him a lot of grief. He still has an influence on the game through his coaching and it is great to see him still involved in loving it.”

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