Australia spinner Nathan Lyon impressed everyone with his willpower and strength by coming out to bat in a limping condition despite a calf injury in the ongoing second Ashes 2023 Test at Lord’s. Lyon is one of the most popular names in the Australian squad and he has quite a few nicknames. “Well Bowled, Gazza” and “Nice, Garry” shouts by former captain Tim Paine remain fresh in cricket fans’ ears.
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Getting a nickname for an athlete is one thing but it becoming a household thing is quite an achievement regarding popularity. Not just on the ground, but social media fans also have created a lot of memes on the same. It is quite intriguing that Lyon has not missed a single Test since 2013 and this match is his 100th match in a row.
Why Is Nathan Lyon Called Garry?
Readers must note that Australia wicket-keeper batter Matthew Wade gave Lyon his nickname “Garry” during South Africa’s tour of Australia 2016. The legendary off-spinner shares the same surname as former AFL (Australian Football League) player Garry Lyon. Garry Lyon is one of the legends of the game and he captained Melbourne Football Club between 1991-1999.
Wade was heard on the stump mic saying “Nice, Garry” a lot of times. It was taken up by the fans as well and there are lot of compilation videos on streaming platform YouTube about the same. Even Lyon said in an interview that he likes when people call him Garry on the streets.
“It’s brilliant. I’ve now got little kids and guys older than my dad walking around the streets calling [out] ‘Nice, Garry’. It’s a little bit different. I’m enjoying it.”
Garry is quite an unusual name to get so much popularity but it has been chirped so much that everyone now calls Nathan Garry. Not just the players, but the spectators inside cricketing stadiums also don’t miss out on chanting his name whenever possible. If truth be told, he has given them so many reasons to cheer for him over the years.
Why Is Nathan Lyon Called GOAT?
Before Garry, Lyon’s teammates also call him GOAT, which means “Greatest Of All Time”. The name was given to him during Australia’s tour of West Indies 2015. Lyon scalped eight wickets in two matches at an average of 19.25 on seam-friendly wickets which impressed everyone. Taking into consideration his performances since then, he has done everything to justify this name.
Once a part of groundstaff at the Adelaide Oval, Lyon is now one of the best spinners to play the game. He is the only off-spinner outside Asia to cross the mark of 400 Test wickets. Lyon is also the greatest Australian off-spinner and the second-best spinner in the country after late Shane Warne.
