Hero Worship

His outswing, his determination

It was very special to have your childhood hero come to the nets and bowl with you


Always meet your heroes Getty Images
 

Loading ...

When I was small, Dennis Lillee and Malcolm Marshall were the two guys I used to look up to.

Dennis' determination was the first thing that inspired me: he played the game hard and was always competitive. He intimidated the batsmen without saying a lot verbally. And of course, he had the skill.

My grandmother lived in Australia when I was a youngster. She used to send over videotapes of the Kerry Packer thing [World Series Cricket]. That's when I started watching those one-day games. That's when I really got to see Dennis bowling, and immediately wanted to be like him. He bowled nice outswingers and legcutters. I liked that about him. my father bowled in a similar fashion, so I always wanted to be like Dennis.

On my first cricket tour to Australia, Dennis came and gave me a bit of bowling coaching in the nets. That was a big moment for me. I was only 20 years old, so that was very special - to have your childhood hero come to the nets and bowl with you.

Heath StreakDennis Lillee

As told to Sidharth Monga