Jhye Richardson back to his bowling best in BBL opener after shoulder scare

A wicket celebration gone wrong nearly halted former Test quick Jhye Richardson’s journey back to the top, but he was on fire in the Big Bash opener.

Having had his run at Test cricket “ripped away” by repeat injuries, Jhye Richardson’s on-and-off again career is definitely on again and he’s still got his sights set on the international arena.

The injury-prone quick showed in Sunday’s BBL opener that he has confidence in his body, with an impressive performance in the Scorchers’ six-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars.

Richardson had the Stars reeling at 2-3 after his first eight deliveries, knocking off both Joe Clarke and Sam Harper.

He finished with 3-19 from four overs, adding Beau Webster’s wicket, who had been released from the Australian Test team to play in this game.

Richardson said he was not nervous about how his body could hold up despite his scare with an over-the-top wicket celebration in his Sheffield Shield return that sent shudders through Australian cricket when he felt a ping in his shoulder.

“It felt a little bit different coming into this game, just purely actually having some cricket behind me over the last few months,” he said.

“I know last season, I sort of changed my run-up and had all of that that I was dealing with and hadn’t played many games before actually coming into the tournament.

The first wicket of #BBL14 ☝️

It goes to Jhye Richardson! pic.twitter.com/B6TftNyyd8

— KFC Big Bash League (@BBL) December 15, 2024

“I remember last year feeling probably the most nervous I’ve ever felt on a cricket field before my first ball.

“Today was probably the polar opposite. It felt like I could go out there and actually do what I’m used to doing, which is bowling a cricket ball.”

Richardson clutched at his shoulder celebrating a wicket by giving high-fives to his teammates after taking wickets from consecutive balls against South Australia.

He left the field but returned to take another wicket in his next over. He said he was fine and had learnt to manage his shoulder.

“I’ve worked really hard over the last few years to get it into a place where it’s manageable,” he said.

“I mean, it does sound silly, but ... maybe we’ll stick with the low fives instead of the high fives!

“But that’s just another thing that we deal with. I’ve dealt enough with my shoulder over the last few years. It’s just another thing to add to the basket.

“Obviously, surgery didn’t quite go the way that we would have hoped. That’s just the reality of things, but I think on the back of that, I’ve worked really hard to find different ways to make it work.

“I’m obviously bowling it in from the boundary, but I’ve gotten a run out bowling it in from the boundary. Now it’s just about making sure that it doesn’t happen again.”

Jhye Richardson, in his first #SheffieldShield game for a year, had two wickets in two balls...

But in celebrating the second wicket he's hurt his shoulder high-fiving 😳

UPDATE: He's back on and bowling! Great news 🙌 pic.twitter.com/YIzUCdZMAK

— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) November 24, 2024

Injury has restricted Richardson to three Test matches, and he has represented Australia in 15 ODIs and 18 IT20s.

And while he’s not focusing on the next level just yet, he hopes the opportunity comes around to add to those figures.

“International cricket is always the goal,” he said.

“But I’m obviously not there at the moment, so it would be unrealistic for me to think about international cricket.

“I made my return to Shield cricket, which was a massive goal of mine, so I’ve ticked that box.

“But I think Test cricket is obviously the goal. I’d love to play Test cricket again.

“I think it’s difficult having had a taste of it and then having that sort of ripped away.”