The milestone moments that have shaped Australian bowler Josh Hazlewood's career and life

Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood’s first cricket milestone came in 2002 when he was selected to play for NSW in junior cricket.

In year 6 at the time, Hazlewood recalls the momentousness of the occasion. “It was my first Baggy Blue cap, it was a pretty special moment.”

His selection in the junior NSW squad was an indication of what was to come,  because in the years since the cricketer’s career hasn’t slowed down.

Domain spoke with the 27-year-old paceman about the key milestones on and off the pitch that have shaped his life. 

Youngest paceman to represent NSW

In 2008 Hazlewood opened the bowling at the Sydney Cricket Ground against the touring New Zealand side. The four-day Sydney match came as something of a shock after the one-day games he was accustomed to playing in Tamworth. “At the time, I hadn’t played a game in Sydney grade, I was picked straight from Tamworth, from the country, so that was pretty special.”

2007-2009: U17s and U19s

“From here you can make the Australian team and play in the World Cup, so it was my first taste of international cricket – it springboards you into the senior state squads. I played in a carnival against other states, one when I was 16 then a big one when I was 18 in New Zealand and we won. I was playing with guys like Mitch Marsh and Adam Zampa and it was quite an important step.”

Once in a state squad you’re contracted as a professional cricketer, says Hazlewood. “There’s a sense of ‘now the hard work begins’, but it meant I’d got the opportunity to make something of myself and I wanted to play Sheffield Shield consistently.”

One-day international debut

In 2010 Hazlewood became the youngest player to make his one-day international debut. “I’d only played a handful of games for NSW, and I found myself in an Australian winter playing for the Australian team in England with Ricky Ponting. It was a bit surreal.”

First foray into property

Needing a Sydney base, Hazlewood entered the property market in 2012 when he bought a three-bedroom apartment in Waterloo. “I didn’t know anything at all [about property]. I talked to a few of the senior guys who’d gone through it to find out about the paperwork and how things work. It does feel like you’ve made it into adulthood when you buy a place.”

The Baggy Green

In December on 2014 Hazlewood received his Baggy Green cap from his boyhood hero, fast bowling champion Glenn McGrath, becoming the 440th Test cricketer for Australia.

Player of the match award

In November 2015, Hazlewood became the first player to achieve the player of the match award in a day-night Test match. “That does stand out [as a milestone moment]. I was in the team, but I didn’t feel entrenched. Mitch Starc got injured in the first innings, so more pressure fell on the rest of the bowlers, especially myself. I took six wickets in the second innings, it was a big moment in my career.”

A home in Hunters Hill

After four years in Waterloo, Hazlewood went house hunting for a new home and set his sights on a four-bedroom, three-bathroom property with a pool in leafy Hunters Hill. “This house was an auction, so it was another exciting moment. I conveniently happened to be away when it came time to move so a lot of the moving fell on my girlfriend Cherina. We’ve got a lot more stuff now, so the next move might be more difficult!”

Joint vice-captain of the Australian Test team

In September this year Hazlewood and teammate Mitch Marsh were chosen as the first joint Test vice-captains under captain Tim Paine.

“It was a nice added bonus, it puts more onus on me to play a leading role, to have a title. Working with Tim Paine will be great. It’s about having a good relationship between the bowling group and the captain, we’ve struggled with that at different stages, so I’ll help link that together, the tighter we can get that [relationship] the better.”

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