Mitch Marsh wins the Allan Border Medal for the first time

One-time whipping-boy has captured the hearts of Australian sports lovers with an emotional and humour-filled speech after capturing a major award.

An emotional Mitch Marsh thanked his wife for changing his perspective on life and his captain Pat Cummins for believing in him even though he gets “a bit fat at times and I love a beer” as he completed his career resurgence by claiming the Allan Border medal.

Marsh, who once thought Australia hated him, said his name “looks weird” on a list littered with the greatest players of the past 20 years but after a stunning 12 months across all formats he couldn’t be denied a win for the good guys.

The man dubbed “the Bison”cantered to victory in the most prestigious individual award in Australian cricket.

On the back of 1638 runs across Tests, ODIs and T20s, including a breakthrough and unforgettable Ashes century in Leeds and an even more brilliant unbeaten 177 against Bangladesh at the World Cup, Marsh was crowned Australia’s best player over the past 12 months.

The 32-year-old polled 223 votes, a whopping 79 ahead of Test captain Pat Cummins (144) and Steve Smith (141), evidence of a stunning year in red and white-ball cricket in a voting period during which 37 players played for Australia.

In one of the great all-time acceptance speeches Marsh was unwavering in his thanks to his wife of eight months, Greta, and Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald for “believing in me”.

“Grets is an amazing human, I said in my wedding vows eight months ago she gave me the perspective on life I needed and our life is a lot of fun. If I get a duck, or get a hundred, she’s always the same,” Marsh said.

“To Ronny (McDonald) and Patty (Cummins) you believed in me and I can’t thank you enough.

“I’m a bit fat at times and I love a beer but you see the best in me always. You’ve changed my life.

“This is a huge honour. I’ll see you all on the dancefloor.”

Marsh capped a stellar night by also taking out the ODI player of the year award, an achievement enhanced as it comes in the wake of Australia’s stunning World Cup victory over India.

Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitch Marsh after the World Cup win. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images)

In and out of the Test team since his debut a decade ago against Pakistan in Dubai in 2014, Marsh only returned to the XI, after a four year absence during the 2023 Ashes, replacing Cameron Green.

He made an immediate impact blasting 118 in his first innings back, off 120 balls, and now remains part of a locked-in top six backed by selectors to take the Test team forward, with Green only getting back into the team after David Warner’s retirement.

Marsh was set for a pay rise of between $500,000 and $800,000 when new contracts are confirmed in coming months as a key part of all three Australian teams, a figure which could now rise.

He captained Australia’s ODI side in South Africa and is also the man most likely to lead Australia at the T20 World Cup being held in the West Indies and USA in July, taking charge of the upcoming series against the West Indies.

Marsh, regarded by his teammates as the ultimate tourist, said he didn’t think he was a chance of winning, until his teammates suggested he was.

“I really hadn’t thought about it until a few of the boys started getting stuck in to me, I started to think I was a chance,” he said.

“I had four beers at lunch so I had to stop there. Now I’m hoping it’s not live Covid and we look back in three years and think ‘that was a weird time’. It’s a huge honour.”

Mitch Marsh celebrates after reaching his century at Headingley. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

It’s a mark of how far Marsh has come from being the one-time whipping boy of Australian cricket who felt unloved in 2019 as part of that Ashes squad.

“Yeah, most of Australia hate me,” Marsh said at the time, feeling the burden of being what many cricket fans thought was an unfulfilled talent who had been given more opportunities than he deserved.

Since then Marsh was man of the match in Australia’s brilliant T20 World Cup win in 2021, has become a Test lock and topped the scoring for his team with 344 runs in the 3-0 series win over Pakistan.

It was that performance which moved Cummins to declare Marsh was “thriving” as an international cricketer.

“He is thriving. He is just showing how good he is,” Cummins said.

Marsh joins an elite list of only 15 previous winners of the medal, a list that includes the best players of the past two decades, including Cummins, Steve Smith, a four-time winner as well as cricket greats Ricky Ponting, Steve Waugh and the inaugural winner, Glenn McGrath.

Originally published as Mitch Marsh wins the Allan Border Medal for the first time