10 Facts about Ben Hilfenhaus: The seasonal swinger

If it were possible, even remotely to read a personality of a fast bowler through the way he bowled, it would be extremely easy in the case of Ben Hilfenhaus. The smile on his face, the four fingers that wiped off the sweat and an intermittent stutter each time he made his way back to his bowling mark, said a distinctive story. The drug to satisfy his addiction was a cricket ball weighing no more than a few ounces. Stress fractures, a dodgy knee and several broken fingers did little to stop his career. Putting out instances where ‘Hilfy’ stood out from the rest is not the easiest to find. Nevertheless, the joy watching him run into bowl each time illustrates the story of a man with just one thing on his mind.

1. An Island of hope:

Ulverstone, one of the islands of the archipelagos of Tasmania was the birthplace of Ben Hilfenhaus. Born on the 15th of March 1983, Hilfenhaus’ birth coincided with an interesting time for Australian cricket. Australian Rules footballer David Neitz and former Australian Prime Minister Joseph Lyons also hail from the small Tasmanian town.

2. Gentle Ben:

It is said that a major chunk of victories by the Australian cricket team is won by ‘sledging’. Ben Hilfenhaus however, made the ball do all the talking. While it was fearsome pace and foul language that proved to be the secret weapon for Australian pacers, Hilfenhaus’ swinging prowess and gentle grin proved to be rather harmful to the batsman of the time.

3. A dodgy knee:

If there was a kryptonite for Ben Hilfenhaus, it was a niggling back and a dodgy knee. He found his way in and out of the team with frustrating regularity courtesy of major fitness issues. Apart from the stress fractures in his back, Hilfy’s knee proved to be his source of pain as finally called it a day in early 2016.

4. A McCullum in the kitty:

Ben Hilfenhaus’ ODI debut came against arch-rivals New Zealand at his home ground at Hobart, Tasmania on the 14th of January 2007. After bowling just 12 balls, he picked up his maiden international scalp. More importantly, this scalp was that of Brendon McCullum.  He thus became a cult hero and earned the nickname Hilfy.

5. The Ben Hilfenhaus calling card:

If Ben Hilfenhaus ever had a calling card, it would say ‘Master of swing bowling for Australian cricket team’.

6. Ashes Heartache:

When Australia conceded the Ashes on home soil, Ben Hilfenhaus was at the non-striker’s end. He watched as Mike Hussey’s wicket fell, returning the Ashes back to England. “It’s something you don’t like to see as a player,” he said. “That sort of heartache makes us stronger and makes us want it really bad, “ he said.

7. The art of reverse swing:

His ability to swing the ball as viciously and at the pace at which he did proved to be extremely beneficial for his career. He became part of the Australian pace quartet, consisting of Mitchell Johnson, Peter Siddle, Doug Bollinger and himself.The story of an Aussie fast bowler

8. Breaching ‘The Wall’:

In India’s tour to Australia in 2011, Ben Hilfenhaus made a bunny out of Rahul Dravid, India’s most ‘technically sound’ batsman. He got Rahul Dravid out twice in the Boxing-Day Test match in both innings to a couple of beautifully conjured up away swingers. Dravid’s tally of being out bowled went from 6 to 8 in the span of one match.

9. An ode to hard work:

n his return to the national side in later 2011, his pace had increased to around 140 to 145 km/h (87 to 90 mph). There have been several comparisons made between Hilfenhaus and Glenn McGrath and McGrath himself described him as “very impressive”.

10. Bradman young player of the year:

In February 2007, Ben Hilfenhaus was awarded the award for Bradman young player of the year along with Chris Rogers.