A two-ball duck, a few nervous moments, a rapid opening stand with Head in the chase were all part of Weatherald’s Test debut
Andrew McGlashan23-Nov-2025
Jake Weatherald scored a duck and 23 off 34 on Test debut•Getty Images
For Jake Weatherald, Perth was a remarkable start to a Test career.Less than 48 hours after being presented his cap by David Warner and trying to keep his emotions under control while wanting to “scream and jump up and down,” he was celebrating a victory. Between times he had overcome the stresses of being on a pair, and pondering what it could mean for his future, opened with two different partners – neither of them the expected figure – and had a front row seat to the start of one of more spectacular Test innings ever.”It was a very strange game,” he said, which still sounded like an understatement.Related
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As it transpired, Weatherald did not need to open at the very start of the Test so had time to soak in the atmosphere in the field as Mitchell Starc took seven wickets, but he was out there before tea on the opening day. Such was his focus on what was to come, he hadn’t fully realised it wasn’t Usman Khawaja walking out with him due to suffering back spasms, but rather Marnus Labuschagne.Weatherald said there had not been discussion between him and Khawaja over who would face the first ball. Then when Labuschagne asked if he wanted it, Weatherald took the opportunity to get the moment out of the way. Two balls later, he was laid flat out in the crease by a Jofra Archer thunderbolt that trapped him lbw.It was a moment that prompted a few words from the England fielders when Australia’s chase began, this time with Travis Head having come out alongside Weatherald. “It was actually pretty friendly,” Weatherald said. “It was more about Marnus not taking the first ball in my first innings, which I agreed with.”I was like, ‘yeah, you’re right, boys.’ Probably should have taken it for me. But it was all fun and games. I don’t think they were too worried about me, to be fair. I think they were more worried about Heady and the rest of the boys coming in.”Second time around, Head took the first delivery from Archer. Sitting on his pair, Weatherald was forced to sweat through 10 balls before, to huge cheers around Perth Stadium, working one off his body through square leg.Jake Weatherald was blown off his feet by Jofra Archer to fall for a duck•Getty Images”Obviously it wasn’t the greatest way of starting your Test debut but, at the same time, I was super pumped to be out there and I still believed that I had the game to go out there and obviously compete,” he said. “Once I got that second opportunity, I was just like, well, if this is my last time to hit a ball for Australia, I’m going to make sure that I do it my way.”I was lucky that I felt as though I moved really well and probably a bit unlucky in the end to get out the way I did. I felt as though I showed myself that I can move well against really good bowlers on obviously quite a tricky wicket.”Two deliveries after getting off the mark, his first boundary came with a controlled edge down to deep third. However, for a few moments next ball that appeared to be his lot when he was given caught behind to what the on-field umpire deemed to be an inside edge. For just the second time in his career, Weatherald was able to use the DRS, although he needed some reassurance from Head.
“It was an amazing thing to be a part of. Just to say that I’ve been a part of one of those innings of Travy’s is pretty cool”Weatherald on Head’s scintillating century in the chase
“I didn’t think about walking off, but I definitely felt like I heard a noise. So I was a bit rattled by that. And sometimes you can’t always feel the ball, especially on the inside edge.”I’ve done one unsuccessful review at a Big Bash game. So after that experience, I was pretty rattled about getting it wrong. Once Heady came down, he said, ‘I reckon it’s hit your back hip’. I sort of said, ‘well, that’s all I’ve heard.’ He sort of calmed me down a bit. But, yeah, there was probably a little bit of just [in Shield] cricket, you walk off and your day’s done sort of thing.”Weatherald’s eventual dismissal came via a top edge to a short delivery he tried to pull that glanced off his helmet and looped to cover. The final tally of 23 off 34 balls won’t jump out when the game is reviewed in the future, but the opening stand of 75 in just 11.3 overs with Head had broken the back of the 205-run chase. England’s shoulders had already slumped.It had been a partnership between former South Australia team-mates, and Weatherald could not help but be in awe of what Head produced.”It was amazing to watch,” he said. “I’ve been quite vocal about being very envious of Trav and the way he goes about his batting. He walks out there with an ability to be clear and calm and to put pressure on the bowlers no matter what the situation is. To make a hundred when the highest score after that was just over 50 really, it’s amazing skill to walk out there and shut out the external noise.”Obviously the Barmy Army were very vocal, and 200 felt a long way away with the fact that we’d only made 140-odd [132] in the first innings. It was one of those things, the way he walks out and bats and just has complete freedom is something that I envy a lot.”It’s something that gave me a lot of confidence at the other end, [knowing] I’ve just got to commit to what I’m doing and I’ll be successful as well. It helped me a lot and it sort of put a lot more emphasis on him really and just let me go about my thing. It was an amazing thing to be a part of. Just to say that I’ve been a part of one of those innings of Travy’s is pretty cool.”
