"He’s watching it like a hawk" - Jake Fraser-McGurk credits Virat Kohli for his recent success and fastest century in 50-over cricket

Young Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk credited Indian superstar Virat Kohli for helping him watch the ball closer, resulting in a revival in his career.

Earlier this year, McGurk broke AB de Villiers' eight-year record for the fastest century in a List-A game against Tasmania in Australia's domestic one-day competition. Playing for South Australia, McGurk raced to his century off just 29 deliveries.

He scored a sensational 125 off 38 balls that almost helped them pull off a miraculous run-chase of 436 against Tasmania.

Speaking to Fox Cricket, McGurk revealed how incorporating Kohli's ability to watch the ball closely into his game has reaped tremendous rewards.

"The last few seasons, I’ve felt like, it sounds weird, but I haven’t been actually watching the ball as hard as I can," Jake Fraser-McGurk said. "You see players like Virat, whose eyes are really wide when he’s facing up.

"He’s watching it like a hawk, so I thought I could get something out of that and try to look for the seam on the ball, and then just reacting and backing my instincts."

Following his record-breaking century, McGurk has gone from strength to strength, scoring his maiden first-class century against his former side Victoria last month.

Meanwhile, Virat Kohli is coming off an incredible 2023 ODI World Cup, finishing as the leading scorer with a single-edition record of 765 runs.

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"He just backs his own style of play and has 100 per cent commitment to everything" - Jake Fraser-McGurk on Travis Head

Travis Head was the Player of the Match in the recent 2023 World Cup final.

Jake Fraser-McGurk also revealed his admiration for Australian swashbuckling opener Travis Head and how he is fully committed to his style of play.

Head is coming off a magnificent 137 off 120 deliveries in the 2023 World Cup final against India, helping Australia clinch their sixth title. The southpaw continued with his aggressive batting despite the Aussies struggling at 47/3 in their run chase of 241 in the final.

"He just backs his own style of play and has 100 percent commitment to everything he does and every shot he plays," McGurk said. "Taking that out of his batting style and trying to implement it into mine, and just trusting my processes has really helped me this season.

"Looking at Travis, maybe that’s someone that I can aspire to bat like, and it’s pretty good I’m in his state now."

Despite mediocre numbers in first-class and T20 cricket, McGurk's graph continues to trend upwards this year. The talented batter averages an impressive 36 in List-A cricket at a fearsome strike rate of over 140.

Jake Fraser-McGurk will be in action playing for the Melbourne Renegades in the 2023-24 Big Bash League, starting on Thursday, December 7.