How Nathan Ellis went from Sydney grade cricketer to Hobart Hurricanes quick

Two years after he was plugging away in Sydney grade cricket, Nathan Ellis will enter the Big Bash League as one of Australia’s in-form pacemen. Here’s how he went from relative obscurity to a Hobart Hurricanes deal.

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The first was full of fortune.

The next two crashed into off stump.

A signal of intent.

By the fourth, former Test quick Brendon Julian hailed Tasmanian Nathan Ellis’ destructive spell against New South Wales: “Beautifully bowled. Pace, full, yorker. It does not get any better than that.”

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Ellis shot to prominence with a Marsh Cup haul of 5-38 against a NSW side featuring nine players with Test experience in October.

Nathan Ellis charges in for Tasmania during the Marsh Cup.

“I got a lot more Instagram followers, that’s for sure,” Ellis said.

“It was very crazy. It was one of our first TV games as well.

“Having that performance as I did, then paired with the TV game, it was obviously going to get a bit of exposure, which is really cool.

“You don’t play for that but it’s one of the cool things that happens when you get to this level and was something I’d never experienced before.

“Bit of a shock to the system and you have got messages from people, ones you didn’t know, and people you haven’t seen in years.”

The 25-year-old left his home state of New South Wales two years ago, seeking greater opportunities in Tasmania after snaring 79 wickets in two seasons for NSW grade cricket club St George.

After a 35-wicket campaign for Lindisfarne put him on the radar of state selectors, he presented an irresistible case with 49 wickets in Tasmania’s Premier League last summer.

“It was really nice to get a taste (in New South Wales), but at times it was frustrating because you feel like you can contribute, but you also feel like you’re quite a bit off the mark,” he said.

“When you have a good week, you feel close. But as soon as you have a bad week it feels like it’s the end of the world in a way because you’re right on the cusp there and trying to break in.”

🙏🙏🙏

Will a #BBL09 club sign Tasmanian quick Nathan Ellis?

5-38 in the #MarshCup against NSW and 9-30 on Saturday in Tasmania 😲

He features in @TomSangsterSC's Cheapie Bible: https://t.co/v6KQlrXYSe #supercoachbbl pic.twitter.com/18sunz145h

— SuperCoach BBL (@SuperCoachBBL) November 5, 2019

The paceman has gained a strong reputation for his unerring accuracy, a trait club coach Matt Wilkie is confident will stand him in good stead in the Big Bash League.

Ellis finished third on the Marsh Cup wickets table with 12, behind only Nathan Coulter-Nile (17) and Mark Steketee (13).

His form earned the former Sydney Sixers academy player his first full-time Big Bash League contract with Hobart Hurricanes.

Nathan Ellis tears in for Lindisfarne in the Tasmanian Premier League.

Nathan Ellis played for St George in NSW before opportunity came knocking in Tasmania.

“(Adam Griffith) and the Tassie coaches really love his white-ball stuff, just from the execution point of view,” Wilkie said.

“He’s so accurate with it.

“We have seen in club cricket that he’s great with red and white and he does swing a red ball. “That’s where his opportunity has come with the white ball and it suits his strength, his accuracy.

“It’d be great to see him get a go with the red ball down the track.”

ROSE AND ELLIS SIGN! 🎉

The Hobart Hurricanes Squad for KFC BBL|09 is complete.

Clive Rose returns to the squad and we welcome Nathan Ellis to #TasmaniasTeam 🏏 #BBL09 pic.twitter.com/9FtxbHtY39

— Hobart Hurricanes (@HurricanesBBL) November 27, 2019

No team knows Ellis’ relentless approach better than South Hobart Sandy Bay.

The right-arm quick carved through the Sharks’ batting line-up last month, finishing with 9-30 from 11.1 overs to shatter his previous career-best figures of 6-40.

“It was just one of those days where everything went right. Lucky enough to get nine-for, which is surreal just saying it out loud,” Ellis said.

There are few bigger shoes in world cricket to fill than those of Australia’s Ashes nemesis Jofra Archer.

The lethal English paceman will be on international duties during the BBL, leaving a fast-bowling vacancy in the Hurricanes’ side which Ellis plans to make his own.

“He just came down with all the skills, was ready to go and has worked his arse off for two years,” Wilkie said.

Ellis, a $42,000 rookie, features in more than 1500 SuperCoach BBL teams, including his stepdad’s.

“It’s pretty cool to be in those sort of games. It’s kind of strange,” he said.

“Hopefully I can get them a few points.”

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Originally published as How Nathan Ellis went from Sydney grade cricketer to Hobart Hurricanes quick