Life in fast lane took its toll on ‘Wild Thing’ Tait
Tristan Lavalette pays tribute to a fearsome bowler who brought excitement to the game
Hardy English supporters, sensing 16 years of prolonged Ashes agony were about to memorably end, had a glum Australian youngster in their sights. Shaun Tait, just 22 years old and playing in his second Test, was anchored to the boundary and copping a mouthful in a severe initiation into international cricket.
The powerfully-built South Australian already had built a formidable reputation for having an innate ability to scythe through batting line-ups. However, that rarefied talent was juxtaposed by an unfortunate knack of spraying the ball and leaking runs.
On this pivotal day in September of 2005 with the Ashes – and legacies – hanging in the balance, Tait was seen as a liability and ignored by Ricky Ponting, who leant heavily on star bowlers Glenn McGrath, Shane Warne and Brett Lee for the breakthroughs in what was essentially a three-pronged attack.
However, Australia was thwarted by Kevin Pietersen’s cavalier debut century on the final day at the Oval to ensure the fifth Test ended in a draw and a 2-1 series victory for England.
That result was not a foregone conclusion earlier in the day with a swirling belief that Australia – at the peak of their powers – could conjure a miraculous victory as they had so many times before. Almost inevitably, McGrath and Warne – playing their last ever Test in England – dipped into their bag of tricks to give Australia hope.
Seemingly forgotten, Tait was neglected until the 56th over of the innings in a clear indication that Ponting didn’t have faith in the youngster. Promptly, almost confirming Ponting’s reservations, Tait was immediately smashed for consecutive boundaries by a rampaging Pietersen.
However, three balls later, Tait’s trademark in-swinger sent Geraint Jones’s off-stump cartwheeling – not quite a knockout punch but nevertheless a breathtaking moment.
The wicket briefly reignited Australia’s faint hopes before Pietersen snuffed them out. Tait only bowled four more overs before Ponting’s patience wore thin. Still, the utter destruction of Jones indicated Tait’s future was bright.
“I was young and embarrassed…. frustrated because I hadn’t bowled that much although it was understandable because we had three great bowlers,” Tait recalls to The Cricket Paper. “The crowd was ripping into me and I was just relieved to get that wicket. But we lost the Ashes that day, so it isn’t something that I look back fondly on.”
Despite defeat, Tait, however, says he was proud to be part of an historic contest. “The atmosphere was incredible,” he says. “The cricket was played at such a high level and in great spirit… just too bad we were on the wrong end of the result.”
After playing at the end of the series, it seemed Tait would launch an exciting international career. Unfortunately, he succumbed to injuries and wouldn’t play Test cricket again until January, 2008, against India at the WACA. It proved to be his third and final Test, as he soon made the tough decision to call time on his first-class career at 25.
Incredibly, during such a sustained period of success for the team, Tait never tasted a Test victory and the losses at Nottingham – during his debut in the fourth Test – and the WACA were Australia’s only defeats during that 30-month stretch.
Tait’s decision to stop playing redball cricket proved the right call as he enjoyed the fruits of a long and decorated career as a T20 specialist. The now 34-year-old officially retired late last month due to a chronic elbow injury, which hampered him during the Big Bash, when he played for Hobart.
Tait is grateful the advent of T20 provided an alternate pathway. “I knew I was going to retire after the BBL… I was done. I was struggling to play,” he says. “I copped a bit of flak for concentrating on T20 cricket and I had to wear that. But I was able to play a fair bit and T20 suited me and was my best format so it worked out well.”
Tait’s unconventional slinging action, marked by a heavy exertion of the shoulder, was physically demanding and the subsequent toll derailed his career despite attempts to tinker with his action.
However, Tait, nicknamed ‘Wild Thing’, was innately a gunslinger and all he really yearned for was to bowl as fast as humanly possible. Always bigger and stronger than his peers, a 17-year-old Tait was recorded bowling at 142kph at an amateur fast bowling competition.
“Growing up, I loved watching Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Curtly Ambrose. I wanted to bowl quick like them,” he says. “I wanted to consistently bowl 150kph. I was born to bowl fast and it bored me bowling slower,” he adds.
Tait’s unbridled fury tested the speed guns, most notably with 161.1kph against England in 2010 – the second fastest recorded delivery and was just 0.2 kph short of Pakistan paceman Shoaib Akhtar’s all-time mark.
I copped a bit of flak for concentrating on T20, but it suited me and was my best format so it worked out well
“In my thinking, I wanted to reach 160kph,” he says. “I was probably never going to play 50-100 Tests because I just wanted to bowl express pace and that’s hard on the body. But bowling fast got me picked in the Test team so I’m thankful for that.” Tait’s international career may have been limited but being an important member of Australia’s unbeaten 2007 World Cup team stands out as his crowning achievement. In the Caribbean, Tait claimed 23 wickets at 20 to help Australia claim their third consecutive World Cup. “I didn’t get to win that much in my career but to be part of the 2007 World Cup triumph is something no one can ever take from me,” he says. “It was a memorable two months and what sticks with me was the team environment. We just loved being around each other both on and off the field.” With retirement from cricket coming a little earlier than expected, Tait says he will take some time to consider the next phase of his life. “I would possibly like to get into fast bowling coaching but I’ll sit back and have a think about it,” he says. “My body’s broken down but I feel content because I know I gave it everything.”