Scott Boland

There are some men who just give off that fast bowler vibe - tall, well-built, heavily-bruised landing foot. If you saw Scott Boland in his cricket attire, you'd know he's a fast bowler. A droopy-shouldered Scott raced through the ranks of grade-cricket and was touted by many coaches in the circuit to be the next big thing in the Australian fast-bowling line-up.

He was handed a contract by Victoria for Shield cricket at the age of just 22 and made his Victoria debut in 2011-12. In the subsequent season, however, he got an extended run for the side, and made full use of his opportunities, collecting 19 scalps in 9 games at an average of 37.73 in the season. He went on to top the wicket charts in the Ryobi Cup in 2013/14, with 9 wickets. The next Shield season saw Boland tear through reputed batting line-ups in shield cricket and claim another 25 wickets in the 2014-15 Shield season.

He finally managed to make the selectors sit up and take notice as he ripped through the Western Australian line-up to claim his best performance in an innings(7/31), and was consequently called up for the for the home Test at the Bellerive Oval against the West Indies. He was named in the ODI and T20 international squads in the same summer against India and had a modest series. He isn't a regular in the playing XI in limited-overs international, however, he continues to knock on the selectors' doors, with his stellar domestic performances. His purple patch in domestic cricket earned him the Bill Lawry medal for the best performance of the Sheffield Shield in 2016.

Boland has also played for Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League. He had a prolific run in BBL 06, ending up as the franchise's highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets at a strike rate of a wicket every 15 balls. His economy rate on 8.37 is also more than acceptable as he is a death-overs specialist and forms a formidable partnership along with John Hasting at the death, with the ability to bowl yorkers and various slower balls, at will. He will be one of the most crucial players for the Stars in the 7th edition of the league, as the onus to stop the bleeding of runs in the slog is up to the aforementioned duo.

With the essential build and skills to make it as a fast bowler, Boland has been unlucky to have missed out on an extended run in the national side. However, with the packed Test schedule of the Australian team, the backing of an unblemished domestic record, and the inherent nature of fast bowling (fast bowlers getting rested), an opportunity to don the Baggy Green may not be too far for Boland.

By Rishi Roy
As of December 2017