Brad Haddin bristled when told how refreshing it had been to see the spirit and smiles of England and New Zealand during their fantastic series of Test and limited-overs matches.
‘Do you guys really want the Ashes to be played like that?’ spluttered Australia’s combative, old-school wicketkeeper. ‘It was nice, was it? Well, this is a totally different beast. We’re not New Zealand, we won the World Cup final. We’ll play the way we play and if you like it, you like it.’
Haddin’s message was clear. There may be a wind of change blowing through the world game but it has not reached Cowra, New South Wales, just yet.
‘I’m not sure what you’re trying to get at,’ he continued, clearly astonished the question had been asked. ‘It will be hotly contested on the field but I’ve never played in an Ashes campaign where things have got out of hand. This one won’t be any different.
‘It will be highly competitive and we have the utmost respect for Alastair Cook and England. It will be played in the great spirit it always has been.’
Haddin’s comments go to the heart of the debate over how the game should be played. The way it was done by New Zealand, and which rubbed off on England, just feels right and Brendon McCullum seems like a pioneer of a better, more edifying game. Play hard, yes, but play the right way.
The veteran Haddin showed what he thought about that during and after that World Cup final when he said New Zealand were too nice and that they would cop it from him more than ever.
His subsequent ‘send-offs’ to Martin Guptill and Grant Elliott in Melbourne appeared churlish and attracted widespread criticism, including in Australia.
Yet he is clearly not for turning and reacted incredulously when told even Jimmy Anderson had expressed his hopes for a more clean-cut series. ‘Jimmy Anderson?’ exclaimed an animated Haddin. ‘He’s asking for peace? He should look in the mirror. England start half the sledging!
‘We have a couple of guys who bowl over 150kph (93mph) so there will be times when it’s uncomfortable out there. It would be a lot easier facing them if they were smiling at you. It doesn’t mean everyone’s sledging or going across the line. These guys bowl fast and it’s their job to intimidate and get the upper hand.
‘Ashes campaigns are different, but whatever’s happened on the field, the doors of both rooms are open at the end of the fifth Test and it’s been that way ever since I’ve played.’
Haddin has certainly been a thorn in England’s side. Time after time during that 5-0 humiliation in 2013-14 he would come in with his side in a bit of trouble and rescue them spectacularly. He may be 37 now and there were signs even at Canterbury during the first warm-up game that his keeping is not quite what it was, but it is easy to see why Australia want him for one last hurrah.
It turns out that age, with 10 members of Australia’s squad over 30 and some of them closer to 40, is another topic that gets Haddin’s goat. ‘What were you thinking Dizzy?’ he had said on TV when asked to comment on Jason Gillespie’s description of Australia as ‘Dad’s Army’.
Now he says: ‘Our guys are still as fit as anything and doing the job for our team. If we weren’t good enough for this level the selectors wouldn’t have picked us. If I couldn’t contribute and get better I wouldn’t be here.
‘I’ve built myself up for this series and everything I’ve done over the last couple of months is making sure I’m ready. If I wasn’t getting better I’d have retired.’
Haddin will come up against an old friend in England’s new coach Trevor Bayliss.
‘Trevor has had a massive influence on my career since I started working with him captaining New South Wales. He gave me the chance,’ Haddin added.
‘He’s a great person and takes a lot of the anxiety out of the changing room. He gets cricketers to enjoy the game. He’ll never rant and rave and is a pretty even- tempered person. He encourages players to learn about the game and he’s a good appointment. The bottom line is he’s a good man.’
But will it not feel strange to see him with the Three Lions on his chest trying to win the Ashes for England? ‘No, I couldn’t care less. An opportunity has come up for him over here. He’ll do a wonderful job and it’s great for Trevor to test himself on this stage.’
Haddin is in danger of sounding a bit too, well, nice. Could he ever imagine what it would be like if there was an English coach of Australia? ‘No, I couldn’t imagine that at all. A South African one (Mickey Arthur) didn’t work.’
That’s more like it, Brad. We don’t want you coming over all friendly. This is the Ashes, after all. – Daily Mail