Nathan Lyon: Girlfriend helped dig me out of Ashes hole

Nathan Lyon reveals how Emma McCarthy helped him recover from his Headingley nightmare which left him the “worst I’ve ever been”.

Emma McCarthy and Nathan Lyon.

If Australia had not recovered to secure the Ashes it would have been remembered as the most costly fumble in Test cricket history.

Nathan Lyon’s butter fingers at the death in the Third Test at Headingley saw Australia’s last hope of ending a last-wicket partnership between Ben Stokes and Jack Leach slip away and left the offspinner “the worst I’ve ever been after a game”.

In a new interview with cricket.com.au, the popular Aussie has revealed how he managed to bounce back in time to help his country respond immediately in the fourth Test at Manchester and retain the urn.

Lyon needed to escape so went to the Gerard Butler film Angel Has Fallen at a Leeds cinema the next day while drawing nearer to girlfriend Emma McCarthy, who was following the tour in England.

“Making a mistake just proves we are human (but) it was pretty tough,” Lyon told cricket.com.au.

“I was lucky enough to have Emma with me to help take my mind off things, and some family was there as well.

“It was just easy to talk to those guys and Em and make sure I could forget about Headingley as quick as I could.”

Lyon managed to tick off his pre-series goal of 20 wickets despite conceding the Poms played him well.

“I set myself a goal of 20 wickets, hopefully a little bit more … I took 20 wickets,” Lyon said.

“You’ve got to give England credit, the way they played me, it was a lot more off the back foot which on those type of wickets where it’s a bit slower, nullified my bounce and pace a bit.”

Nathan Lyon misses a run out opportunity on Jack Leach. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Back in Australia where he’s expected to join Steve Smith, David Warner, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood in NSW’s opening Sheffield Shield match against Queensland starting in Brisbane next week, Lyon had one parting shot for the Poms when asked about post-Ashes celebrations.

“Even though it’s a 2-2 series and England were telling me I couldn’t celebrate a draw, they did exactly that during the World Cup,” he said. “I wanted to make sure we were celebrating that moment.”