Full Name

Nathan Wade Bracken

Born

September 12, 1977, Penrith, New South Wales

Age

46y 189d

Nicknames

Bracks, Andy G

Batting Style

Right hand Bat

Bowling Style

Left arm Fast medium

Playing Role

Bowler

Height

1.95 m

Education

Faulconbridge Primary; Springwood High School

The search for a Test-class left-armer, a universal pursuit, led Australia to Nathan Bracken five times between 2003 and 2005, but it was as a one-day player that he was at his best. After an accomplished career as a tight and testing white-ball operator, he suffered a series of serious knee injuries and, despite coming back for New South Wales, was cut from Australia's contract list in April. He vowed to continue fighting.

Tall and slim, Bracken moves the ball both ways in the air and off the seam and fitted easily into Australia's rampant one-day squad in 2000-01. He was also instrumental in resuscitating New South Wales' fortunes, including a first-innings 6 for 27 in their 2004-05 final win over Queensland and 7 for 4 earlier that season when South Australia fell for 29. A shoulder injury cut short his maiden Ashes tour in 2001 after two matches, but following a spell on the sidelines he returned to the national set-up during the 2003 World Cup, when Jason Gillespie dropped out with a heel injury.

His Test debut finally came in 2003-04, but in three outings against the powerful Indian batting line-up he failed to make real inroads. In 2004 he was omitted from Cricket Australia's list of contracted players, but returned to the ODI scene for the 2005 Super Series and became a regular in green and gold. Work in the nets refining his swing was rewarded with two Tests in 2005-06 and he also added another string by delivering across the seam when he wanted to defend.

The versatility and control led to 46 ODI wickets for 2006, the second most in the world, and at times during the 2006 Champions Trophy he opened the attack, dropping Glenn McGrath to first change. In 17 matches between the South Africa tour and the end of the CB Series he picked up at least a wicket in each game and he missed only one match at the World Cup, capturing 16 victims in his second campaign.

His steady rise peaked after the 2008 West Indies tour when he became the No. 1-ranked one-day bowler, his 34 wickets in the previous home contest boosting his ratings. The West Indies series was also an important step following what could have been a career-ending knee injury. He required surgery and when the doctor scraped away the cartilage it was like "old paint peeling off a wall".

In 2008-09 Australia raided the fast-bowling cupboards without calling on Bracken to assist in the five-day team's revival, a course of events reported in detail most Sundays by a Sydney tabloid. The rest of the country wasn't in shock, knowing Bracken's strengths lie in containing rampant limited-overs batsmen with his clever variations of pace and length. Bracken's mother-in-law occasionally predicts his performances, but guessing how long he will continue to play is difficult, especially if the next generation of quicks continue their rapid development.
Cricinfo staff August 2010

Nathan Bracken Career Stats

Bowling

FormatMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
Tests5101110505124/484/7142.082.7292.5100
ODIs116116575942401745/475/4724.364.4133.0520
T20Is1919377438193/113/1123.056.9719.8000
FC67-1363456032157/4-26.062.4663.4-90
List A205-1033975192865/385/3826.294.3636.1830
T20s2828586705313/113/1122.747.2118.9000

Batting & Fielding

FormatMatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100s50s4s6sCtSt
Tests562703717.5011262.50007020
ODIs116351819921*11.7028270.5600105260
T20Is1963154*5.002268.18001060
FC67883010076317.36--01--180
List A205722838921*8.84--00--390
T20s2895227*5.502684.61001160
Nathan Wade Bracken

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Recent Matches of Nathan Bracken

MatchBatBowlDateGroundFormat
NSW vs South Aust--3/4824-Feb-2010AdelaideList A
NSW vs Victoria52/3410-Feb-2010MelbourneList A
NSW vs Queensland--2/4703-Feb-2010SydneyList A
NSW vs South Aust101/5226-Jan-2010WollongongList A
Australia vs England--2/4217-Sep-2009NottinghamODI # 2891

Photos of Nathan Bracken

Nathan Bracken poses with his wife Haley
Nathan Bracken is congratulated on one of his two wickets
Nathan Bracken and Brett Lee share a lighter moment during a training session
High fives all around after Nathan Bracken strikes
The Australians celebrate the fall of another Pakistan wicket
Nathan Bracken and Michael Clarke celebrate the wicket of Graeme Smith