Debutant Handscomb’s ‘nice little script’

There are batsmen who go their entire careers without hitting the winning runs in a Test, so for Peter Handscomb to have had the pleasure in Adelaide made his debut all the more memorable. Even more remarkable was the fact that another debutant – opener Matt Renshaw – was at the other end.

Only once before in Test history had two debutants been at the crease when the winning runs were struck in a Test, and that occurred in 1880 in the fourth Test match ever played. To give some context to the drought, Adelaide was the 2236th Test ever played. Combined with Handscomb’s first-innings 54, it meant his was a particularly unforgettable debut.

“It was a nice little script out there,” Handscomb said on Tuesday. “I was kind of hoping I didn’t have to bat in that second innings, or at least that Matty Renshaw would hit the two runs that were needed and I could just sit on my bat. But it was nice to be out there, and with Matty as well in his first game, it was pretty cool.”

Handscomb, Renshaw and Nic Maddinson all made their debuts in Australia’s win over South Africa, and were amongst the five changes to a radically overhauled side following the loss of the series in Hobart. And while there were runs for both Handscomb and Renshaw, Maddinson is still waiting for his first scoring shot in a Test, having been bowled by Kagiso Rabada for a 12-ball duck.

“He’s fine, he’s a resilient player who knows his own game and he’s just a great bloke,” …

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