Cricket: Sri Lankan-origin Zanden Jeh excited by maiden Australia ‘A’ call-up

Zanden Jeh, a 21-year-old left-arm spinner from Brisbane, is thrilled to receive his first call-up to the Australia ‘A’ squad for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka ‘A’, which includes three 50-over matches and two four-day games in Darwin.

Jeh’s excitement was heightened by a bit of drama on the day he got the news, having initially missed the call from selectors before returning it and learning of his selection.

“I was at school teaching at the time when I got the call. I actually missed the call the first time and I had to call Tony Dodemaide (National Selector) back after his voicemail and heard the news then.”

“So, the first person I told was actually Dad. I called Dad straight away and he was down in Hobart and work. So, it was pretty cool to share that moment with him. A bit of surprise and unexpectedness but yeah, ready to rip in.”

Jeh is of Sri Lankan origin, with his father, Michael, born in Sri Lanka. Michael played first-class cricket in England before settling in Australia.

“Obviously being half Sri Lankan, half Aussie, two countries that love their cricket. Dad was a big driver in that in terms of cricket for us, playing as kids in the corridor in the house and having a lot of family support there who all love their cricket on both sides of the family. They were big drivers, I’d say my family in fostering my love for it, love for the game.”

When asked to talk us through the prized scalp of Glenn Maxwell at Junction Oval, an excited Jeh commented, “Obviously Glenn’s resume speaks for itself. The fact that we even get the opportunity to play against someone like that in second element cricket was pretty cool.

“I think everyone, well including myself, particularly myself, was absolutely stoked to get the opportunity. Oh look, I think it was a bit more luck than anything else. The fact that he holds out to deep squares is probably a nice way to get the wicket and there's no pictures on the scorecard I guess. It’s nice to have that one in the pocket but he's an exceptional player. So just to have the opportunity to bowl against a player of that calibre and luckily end up getting his wicket was a nice way to sort of cap off that game.”

Being a left-armer, when asked did he always bowled left-arm from the beginning, Jeh responded, “As a kid, I was actually, so I'm right-handed at everything, right with my right hand, kicking my right foot. The only things I do left-handed are batting and bowling.

When asked on who was his cricketing inspirations or role models during his formative years, “In batting, I always loved watching Mike Hussey bat. He was a bit of a role model growing up and the sort of way that he went about things, I always tried to sort of base my cover drive and whatever off him, particularly as an aspiring batsman when I was a young kid. Bowling wise, there’s a couple of really good left arm spinners from around the place. Jadeja is a really good one when I was growing up, Rangana Herath, Sri Lankan, obviously that was really, really cool to watch those guys go about their business.

“Looking to more recently and current players, you're looking at guys like Mitch Santner and Australia's own Matt Kuhnemann as well, seeing those guys in action and I’ve had the pleasure obviously playing against guys like Matt Kuhnemann and seeing how they go about their business. It's pretty special to watch and I try and just absorb as much as I can.”