South Australian coach Ryan Harris is willing to go one step further.
Not only does Harris believe Nathan McAndrew is capable of playing Test cricket for Australia – he thinks it’s overdue.
McAndrew was crowned player of the match in South Australia’s second successive Sheffield Shield title, producing a higher level of class with both the ball and bat.
The 32-year-old complemented his 3-71 and 3-50 with a crucial 60 in the third innings that, alongside Alex Carey’s century, swayed the outcome of the Shield final.
Harris says he is routinely impressed by McAndrew’s consistency and durability, insisting the Test selectors may already be behind the curve.
“I think he probably should have already done it by now, to be honest, personally,” Harris, now a dual Sheffield Shield-winning coach, said.
“The way he does it, he has niggles here and there and just gets through it.
“The amount of times he comes off and I am running to him to make sure he’s all right, sore this, sore that, but that’s just the bowling part.
“If you speak to him, I don’t think he’s too worried about it, he wants to keep winning here and, for me, that’s a great attitude to have.
“We have got some pretty good cricketers playing up in that Test team anyway, but should he have been given a chance? Maybe.
“I think he’s shown now for five years, four of those years he’s been the leading wicket-taker if not far off it and he’s pretty handy with some runs as we’ve seen.”
Each of McAndrew’s six wickets were in Victoria’s top six and four of them were left-handers.
Liam Scott, who also played a crucial hand in South Australia’s Shield season, says McAndrew is “one of the best bowlers to left-handers in the country”.
The impressive final ensured McAndrew again finished among the Shield’s leading wicket-takers, claiming 38 at 23.42.
The praise from coach Harris is one thing, and the numbers another, but McAndrew says he’s learned not to chase outcomes.
McAndrew, in perhaps another sign he could adapt at Test level, says the days of pondering selection were left in NSW behind him when he crossed the border in 2021.
“I don’t really look into it, to be honest, I learned a lot about (selection) when I was back in New South Wales,” McAndrew said.
“When I was at grade cricket level, aspiring to play for New South Wales, I put so much pressure on myself that every performance … I had to take a five-for every week because then maybe I’d get an opportunity or get on contract.
“You’re just always looking to that next level and ignoring the process, ignoring the day-to-day battles you’ve got to win.
“I feel like I am bowling as well as I ever have at times, even with some of the challenges I have had this year with vertigo affecting my rhythm for the first half of the year.
“Since Christmas I have got back to my best and am really proud of that, to be honest, it’s been a tough year with some things.
“I don’t really know what will ever happen with the next level, at the end of the day there’s three pretty amazing quicks plus Scotty Boland.
“No matter how well I bowl, I am not taking any of their spots, I am not that stupid. Injuries have got to happen for me to get an opportunity, all I can do is keep bowling to the best of my ability.”
Originally published as South Australian Nathan McAndrew earns Test praise after winning player of the Sheffield Shield final
