Most hype before a test debut?

[Fuller Pilch]

There was a lot of hype before the likes of Hick, Ramprakash, and Pietersen debuted. Likewise I expect the hype and interest to increase for Conway.

Who were some of the other players who created excitement before their debuts?

 

[BoyBrumby]

Archer to some extent. Pretty sure he's the only England player to have won a world cup before his test debut.

Some would argue the ECB even changed their own eligibility criteria to allow an earlier call to the colours in the first place than would otherwise have been the case.

 

[Fuller Pilch]

Good call. Definitely hype about Archer

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Hick definitely. Pietersen not so much until after his ODI debut. A lot of the pundits and commentators were surprised when he came out firing against South Africa in the ODI series. David Gower was certainly earmarked for great things from the age of 18 and a lot of "experts" at the time wanted him picked sooner.

 

[morgieb]

Clarke probably the biggest in my lifetime. Hughes also up there.

 

[karan_fromthestands]

VRV Singh in India. A lot was said about his ability to regularly touch 145k, at that time we didn't have too many fast bowling resource, VRV had an ankle/toe injury as soon as he was picked in the team, and things only went downhill from there.

 

[TheJediBrah]

Privthi Shaw. David Warner.

I expect there will be a lot of hype when James Faulkner finally makes his dayboo

 

[Flem274*]

There was a lot of hype before the likes of Hick, Ramprakash, and Pietersen debuted. Likewise I expect the hype and interest to increase for Conway.

Who were some of the other players who created excitement before their debuts?

kane williamson had a long thread before his test debut. virat kohli had plenty of hype too.

we have to get conways residency sorted before we go on tour. he's a lock for #3 in the first test while kane is at the ipl.

 

[NotMcKenzie]

I expect there will be a lot of hype when James Faulkner finally makes his dayboo

Dunno. Anyone who was here know?

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Hick, nobody else comes close. The hype surrounding him was huge.

 

[Prince EWS]

Rachin may have accumulated enough hype since he became the YouTube batting kid at ten years old.

 

[Howe_zat]

Archer to some extent. Pretty sure he's the only England player to have won a world cup before his test debut.

Some would argue the ECB even changed their own eligibility criteria to allow an earlier call to the colours in the first place than would otherwise have been the case.

Archer was the first I thought of.

Since Pietersen had a ton of hype playing for Notts and then backed it up with starting his England career with a rocket, there's been hype about anyone playing well while 'waiting to be eligible'. I remember Craig Keiswetter getting a lot of second hand hype from the effect.

Hick maybe an early example of this too.

 

[mr_mister]

Phil Hughes, from my lifetime

It's hard to imagine all time it could be anyone other than Graeme Hick though. Debuted with an FC average of what, 70? With 50+ tons to his name

 

[Lillian Thomson]

Archer to some extent. Pretty sure he's the only England player to have won a world cup before his test debut.

Jason Roy. Not that there was much hype. It was more that he was worth a try because all other openers are pants.

 

[AndrewB]

Archer to some extent. Pretty sure he's the only England player to have won a world cup before his test debut.

Jason Roy also made his Test debut after the 2019 World Cup final. Morgan won the World Twenty20 just before his Test debut; don't know if either of them was particularly hyped (there was a fair amount of expectation around Morgan).

In the 80s, Atherton ("Future England Captain") was probably hyped more than Ramprakash.

In 1997 Ben Hollioake was hyped as being the one who was going to save English cricket.

Looking at other countries: Tendulkar was massively hyped.
Going back a bit: Ian Craig was called the "new Bradman" when he scored a double hundred aged 17. Norman O'Neill was similarly hyped a couple of years later (though at least he had a decent Test career, especially early on).

I vaguely remember a fair amount of hype around Darryl Cullinan when he scored a lot of runs in his teens, though at the time SA weren't playing Tests, so it might have been a "lost to Test cricket" angle.

 

[dontcloseyoureyes]

The Prince.

 

[trundler]

I vaguely remember a fair amount of hype around Darryl Cullinan when he scored a lot of runs in his teens, though at the time SA weren't playing Tests, so it might have been a "lost to Test cricket" angle

I think he had broken Graeme Pollock's record for the highest FC score by a South African and so was seen as his successor

 

[trundler]

Ponting must've had a lot of hype given they had to modify the rules of age group cricket because of him

 

[BoyBrumby]

Jason Roy. Not that there was much hype. It was more that he was worth a try because all other openers are pants.

Jason Roy also made his Test debut after the 2019 World Cup final. Morgan won the World Twenty20 just before his Test debut; don't know if either of them was particularly hyped (there was a fair amount of expectation around Morgan).

In the 80s, Atherton ("Future England Captain") was probably hyped more than Ramprakash.

Fair play. I've obviously subconsciously blocked Master Roy's brief test dalliance from my memory for mental wellbeing purposes.

I'd honestly forgotten Eoin played in the T20 WC win though.

The knock with Athers being called "FEC" is that it actually stood for "Effing Educated C-word" though, didn't it?!

 

[honestbharani]

The Prince.

Was Lara's debut that big a deal?