It was a "dream come true" story for Archie Schiller, a 7 year old leg spinner from Australia who co-captained his national team for a day. He was included in the 15 man squad for the boxing day test and accompanied Tim Paine for the toss ceremony. Archie Schiller had received a call from the Australian head coach, Justin Langer in September and was told that he was going to be a part of Australian team.
This was made possible by "Make a Wish" foundation based in Australia who had approached Cricket Australia earlier in the year and talked about the wish of a seven year old kid to represent his country. Cricket Australia organized a few meetings about this and talked to the players before making a call. Archie Schiller is suffering from a life threatening heart disease which was diagnosed when he was a baby. He has undergone a few heart surgeries as well.
When asked about whose wicket would you like to take if you get a chance to bowl, his reply was "Virat Kohli" and he went on to say that Virat Kohli is the best batsman in the world. He was further asked if he liked Kohli and the answer was "NO".He met Virat Kohli two times during the test and might even meet him again after the test. He had told Tim Paine to bat first if you win the toss and when asked about the reason, he said his father told him you should always bat first and get runs on the board.
Archie Schiller was handed Baggy Green by the off spinner Nathan Lyon who is Archie's favourite player. He also went on to practice with Australian team during the training sessions. He had also trained with the squad during the first test match in Adelaide. He gave an advice to the team "hit sixes and get wickets" before he left the field after the toss ceremony.
Archie Schiller has been through a lot as he has undergone as many as 13 open heart surgeries till date. His father was very happy and grateful for the support he received from the Australian team members.
Comments