“Tax accountants don’t celebrate when they do their tax return”: Sam Whiteman explains Teague Wyllie subdued celebration after maiden first-class century

Teague Wyllie subdued celebration: The rookie Western Australian batter scored a match-winning century at the WACA.

All of 18, Western Australia batter Teague Wyllie is making the news for all the right reasons. Having made his first-class debut earlier this year, Wyllie became the youngest batter to score a century in the Sheffield Shield since former Australia captain Ricky Ponting after crossing the three-figure mark in the recently concluded match against New South Wales in Perth.

Coming in to bat with his team struggling at 39/3 in the 26th over, Wyllie held one end safe amid wickets falling at regular intervals from the other end. Reduced to 100/6 in the 61st over, Western Australia managed to gain a 78-run first-innings lead after scoring 258 in 105 overs only and only because of Wyllie’s grit and determination.

Playing only his third first-class match, Wyllie scored a disciplined 104 (204) with the help of 15 fours. Becoming a primary catalyst in an 8-wicket victory, Wyllie’s knock aided efforts of pacer Lance Morris across both the innings.

Sam Whiteman explains Teague Wyllie subdued celebration after maiden first-class century

Wyllie, who idolizes former India captain Rahul Dravid, is mature way above his age according to Western Australia captain Sam Whiteman.

A chief reason behind Whiteman’s assessment of Wyllie is the latter not opting to celebrate a maiden first-class century like any other batter of his age would do. Wyllie didn’t take off his helmet after scoring a hundred to avoid unnecessary attention by doing the same.

“He [Teague Wyllie] said ‘tax accountants don’t celebrate when they do their tax return so I shouldn’t celebrate scoring a hundred’. He loves batting and is an impressive young man. He feels like he’s 28,” Whiteman told ESPNcricinfo after Sheffield Shield 2022-23 Match 1 at the WACA.

Having shortlisted a goal in “Test cricket”, Wyllie has portrayed numerous hints of him having it in him to succeed in cricket’s ancestral format. Although a three-match sample size is quite small to form any type of conclusion, Wyllie will have to build on this initial limelight to press a case for national selection in the subsequent years.

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

Read More