The Ashes Legends: David Boon - A 'Boon' to the Ashes

Australians and sports go back a long way. They are seldom bad at sports; they play cricket, football, rugby, tennis and golf to name a few. The thing about the Aussies is that they are a very dominating nation; they have reached the pinnacle in most sports. The focus of this article will be on one man from this magnificent nation, who conquered everything in one of cricket’s oldest and fiercest rivalries – the Ashes.

On 29th December, 1960, a child was born to a Tasmanian couple, Clarrie and Lesley. The child was called David Clarence Boon, and little did his parents know that he was destined for great things. David’s mother Lesley was herself a hockey player, which made it easier for David to choose a sport to be his profession, and he chose cricket over hockey.

David Boon started his cricket career at the age of 17, where he debuted for Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield competition, a domestic competition in Australia.

Boon, recognised by his famous mustache and portly figure, was one of Australia’s most distinguished batsmen for a very long period. A very versatile player, Boonie, as he was fondly called, played both Tests and limited overs cricket for Australia and his state team Tasmania. He played at various positions in the batting order: No.3, lower middle order, and even as an opener. Apart from being a menacing and dominating figure at the crease with the bat, Boon was an occasional finger spinner as well.

He made his international debut in the ’83-84 World Series Cup against West Indies and made his Test debut against the same team in the ’84-85 series. Boon’s batting was always his strong point. Though he wasn’t the most fluid or attractive batsman to watch, he more than made up for that with his fantastic ability to stay at the crease and accumulate runs whenever required by his team.

Though Boon wasn’t the most consistent, he did contribute an astonishing amount to Australia’s surge as a super power in world cricket during the 80s and 90s. The focus of this article will be on his triumphant efforts for Australia in the Ashes.

Boon’s greatest Ashes triumph came during the 1993 series. His contributions in that series will forever be remembered, as he played a pivotal role in the winning back of the Ashes that year and the retaining of it in the coming years. He featured in six Ashes series altogether – three at home and three in England. He played a major part in four winning campaigns.

Boon played 31 Ashes Tests overall, scoring a staggering 2237 runs at an average of 45, with seven centuries, making him one of Australia’s best batsmen against England.

Great players are often remembered fondly for some fantastic performances over the years or maybe even just one match or an instant of brilliance, but David Boon has nothing to do with that assumption – he was just so good for so long.

It was the year 1989; Australia were travelling to England to reclaim the Ashes. That year’s Ashes was an important series, and everyone taking part understood its meaning. This was one of cricket’s greatest rivalries and winning it would help the victor secure bragging rights over an arch nemesis. In such a scenario, most teams would do everything they could to rest their bodies and ready themselves for the matches. The Aussies had other ideas, particularly Boon.

The flight on the way to London from Sydney may have been more entertaining than the series itself. Boonie had consumed a record 52 cans of beer and got off the plane without any assistance. On the first day, the 52 beers finally started taking their toll on him, and he vomited on live television – a quick revival indeed. The best part was yet to come though: Boon went on to make a brilliant 122 and win the man-of-the-match award. After that battering he gave the English, one would have thought it was over, considering his fluctuating form. But he went on to make a brilliant 442 runs at an average of 55.25 and brought the Ashes home after humiliating the English 4-0 on home soil.

Though he almost always performed magnificently against the English, his performances in the 1989 and 1990-1991 series will forever be remembered. In the 1990-91 series, when England toured Australia in their bid to reclaim the Ashes, little did they know that Boon was going to be the thorn in their side again. He massacred the English bowling to retain the Ashes, smashing a series best of 530 runs at an average of 75.71.

The ‘Keg on Legs’, as he was often called, was in a purple patch that didn’t seem to run out; his form hit the roof following his imperious run in the ’89 series. Allan Border provided some much-needed support and encouragement after his disappointing dismissal when he was batting on 98. Boon went on to score three consecutive centuries including one at Lords, one which he cherishes even till today.

Boon’s tremendous form against the English continued again when the Aussies arrived in England in 1993 to defend their Ashes. His bludgeoning of the hapless English seamers ensured that Australia retained their Ashes crown, as he smashed 555 runs (series highest) at an average of 69.37.

Apart from being a terrific middle order batsman, Boon did extremely well as an opener, a pugnacious opener at that. Australia struggled a lot with their opening combination, and when Kepler Wessels quit the team mid-summer, Boon was promoted to open the batting with debutant Geoff Marsh. He responded extremely well, and scored his first ever Test century, 123 from 255 balls against India. Despite massive success over the years as a demolition man at the top of the order, Boon had to drop down the order to accommodate Mark Taylor and Geoff Marsh at the top.

This is where he unearthed his true potential and became one of Australia’s leading batsmen in the middle order. It was during the 1990-91 Ashes series that he dropped to No. 3 and No. 4 in the order to accommodate Taylor and Marsh. He hit a beautifully crafted and well timed century in the second innings of the third Test in Adelaide; he also had three scores over 50, including two scores in the 90s, as Australia won the series 3-0. He was in surreal form throughout, and was almost untouchable.

When he was at his best, even getting him close to a dismissal was difficult. You could see him grinding away at bowlers, bashing the ball to the fence with utmost ease. His shot selection was out of the world; conventional in every sense of the word, Boon played the most crisp cover drives you could ever imagine. His cut-throat nature also played a big hand in his development of a pile-driving cut-shot. His batting against England in the Ashes was like a fairy-tale that would never end.

His imperious form in the 1993 Ashes suddenly made everyone stand up and take notice of this man’s coming of age. Once he got into his 30s though, Boon seldom had a prolonged period where he would be performing at the top of his powers. There is one very popular saying – “Everything that goes up, must eventually come down.” Every cricketer, be it a batsman or bowler, Indian or Australian, always reaches a point in his career where he no longer holds the key to his team’s success; he no longer makes the contributions to the team he once made.

David Boon too reached such a scenario in his career. His form began to wane by the 1994-95 series (despite smashing 131 in the second innings of the Melbourne Test match and taking a gem of a catch for Shane Warne’s only international hat-trick) but as the powers above would have it, Australia won the series yet again.

His longevity at the top level, despite some major hiccups in form, is a part of his massive aura: he stayed a part of the major Test scene in a strong Australian team for 12 years, well into his mid-30s. His records have astounded generation after generation of cricket fans the world over, be it his batting or those unbelievable 52 beers that he downed. All in all, as a cricketer, he played 107 Tests, scored 7422 runs at an average of 43.65 and hit 21 centuries throughout his Test career.

Having said that, I realise only now that there is no doubting the banners that fans carry around the stadiums in Australia and the world over during the Ashes, which famously read – “Boon – Dead Set Legend”.