Former Australia skipper Shane Watson (Happy Birthday Shane Watson) is celebrating his today.
Watson was born on June 17, 1981, in Ipswich, Queensland, and is known for his destructive batting and all-around performance.
During his international career, he has scored 10950 runs (test+ODI+T20 combined), including 14 centuries and 67 half-centuries, and he has played a crucial role in guiding Australia to 2007 and 2015 World Cup victories.
Watson represented Australia in all formats of the game and is a key player of the Indian Premier League franchise Chennai Super Kings.
How does He Start In International Cricket?
Making his international debut in March 2002, Watson didn’t take long in cementing his place in the star-studded Australian side. He started his career by batting lower down the order, but with the help of impressive technique and a solid approach he soon was promoted to bat as an opener, where he played some match-winning knocks for his team.
Apart from heroics in World Cups, Watson played solid cricket in the other major tournaments as well. The right-handed opener was awarded as the man of the match in the final of the 2006 Champions Trophy for his unbeaten 57-run knock with the bat and 2 wickets with the ball.
Watson recorded a century in the semi-final and final of the 2009 Champions Trophy and was also the Man of the tournament in the 2012 T20 World Cup.
He won the Man of the tournament in IPL 2008 and 2013. And he played a crucial role in making CSK the champions of IPL 208, by scoring a splendid century on the night of the final.
Records and Achievements
Watson holds several records in T20Is, ODIs, and T20s. Some of his records include when he became the fastest Australian to score 5000 runs and take 150 wickets, he is holding the record of scoring the highest number of ODI runs and most sixes in an innings by an Australian, and in 2012, he became the first cricketer to earned the number one ranking in both the batting and all-rounder category.
Watson retired in 2016 as the world’s No. 1 T20I all-rounder.
According to Forbes, the right-handed batter and right-arm medium-pace bowler, Watson was the highest-paid non-Indian cricketer in the world for five consecutive years, from 2011 to 2015.
