Australian Test cap #465 will forever belong to Moama’s Todd Murphy.
The former Moama Cricket Club prodigy will be the first cricketer from the town to earn a baggy green after Aussie captain Pat Cummins confirmed the spin wiz would be making his debut against India in the series opener in Nagpur on Thursday.
The announcement came before the coin toss on day one, and Murphy was presented his cap by Nathan Lyon with the Murphy family, including father Jamie, brother Joel and uncle Troy, watching on.
It rounds off a meteoric rise for Murphy, who will now partner Nathan Lyon in a 35-year first, the duo being the first off-spin Test pairing in more than three decades.
“He’s been bowling beautifully in the nets over here,” Cummins said.
“He’s started really well for Victoria in first-class cricket. If he got the nod, he’s got Nathan Lyon down the other end that he can work with.
“He’s ready — everyone in the squad here has had really good preparation. Whoever we pick is 100 per cent ready to go.”
The rumour mill clicked into overdrive on Wednesday with the announcement that the Murphy family was en route to Nagpur for the first Test, hinting at an imminent selection for the young gun.
The uncapped Murphy will now have a big part to play in Australia’s push for its first series win in India since 2004, another chapter in the 22-year-old’s dramatic rise through the ranks.
Murphy did not take up the art of off-spin until he was 16, carving a reputation at Moama and junior representative cricket programs as a batsman and medium pacer.
He made his first-class cricket debut for Victoria in April 2021 before strong performances for Australia A and the Prime Minister’s XI in 2022 catapulted him into Test contention.
Murphy will drop straight into the cauldron of the four-game series between the two fierce rivals with the Nagpur pitch, already the centre of heated discussion, set to serve up dramatic spin.
The first ball of the Test is at 3pm, with Kayo and Fox Sports broadcasting the clash on TV while SEN 1116 and ABC Grandstand will provide radio coverage.