Does anyone remember former Australian opening batsman Phillip Hughes?
The seemingly forgotten 23-year-old is currently reaping the rewards from his remodelled technique early in his stint with English county Worcestershire.
The much maligned Hughes has faced severe scrutiny following a scintillating start to his international career before being found out against quality short-pitched bowling.
Hughes burst onto the international scene in South Africa 2009 when he became the youngest player to score a century in each innings of a Test match aged 20 in just his second match.
Since his remarkable innings in Durban, Hughes has struggled to cement his spot at the top of the order for Australia.
Hughes currently finds himself low in the pecking order as he has watched others like Ed Cowan and fellow NSW teammate David Warner leapfrog him to face the new ball for Australia.
Highlighting how much he has fallen from grace since his debut was his startling omission from the Australia A squad to take on the England Lions this winter.
However, initial performances for Worcester show Hughes has improved his game.
Hughes has played two domestic 40-overs a side games for returns of 111 and 104.
In both games Hughes displayed the attacking offside flair so prominent during his clinical centuries in South Africa, in addition to powerful strikes through the leg-side.
Although his on-side shots were not text-book, it was effective with several heaves and cross-bat strikes over and through midwicket.
Hughes also demonstrated his creativity with several deflections either side of the keeper running away for boundaries.
Short bowling did however bring about Hughes’s downfall in his second match against Lancashire.
Former England seamer Ajmal Shahzad produced a terrific bouncer which gained steep bounce and caught the edge of Hughes’s blade before he was able to lower his hands.
However the signs are good for the 23-year-old who has evidently worked hard over the off-season to eradicate the technical deficiencies in his technique.
Hughes still has time on his side to force his way back into the Test side.
Form is the selection panel’s key criteria and Hughes is displaying plenty of it at present.
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