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Law reveals heartache at Queensland axe

Stuart Law nearly walked away from cricket after losing his job with the Bulls but has returned as Australia's batting coach for the Sri Lanka tour

In January last year, Stuart Law was ready to walk away from cricket. His beloved Queensland Bulls were running last in the Sheffield Shield, the Brisbane Heat had finished bottom of the KFC Big Bash League and an emergency meeting of Queensland Cricket's Board resulted in Law's resignation.

The proud Queenslander, who had lead his state to their first Shield title in 1994-95, thought his ambitions of becoming a career coach had gone up in smoke.

So when Darren Lehmann came knocking, there was no hesitation. Cricket Australia today confirmed he would be the Australian cricket team's interim batting coach for this winter's Qantas Tour of Sri Lanka.

Law steps up in place of Greg Blewett, who will miss the July-August tour due to the birth of his second child.

"I've been through a bit of a roller-coaster ride recently, I thought about getting out of cricket," Law told reporters in Brisbane today.

"Then I sat down and gave myself an uppercut. I don't know anything else, I want to be a career coach.

"I feel like I've got plenty to give. It's a great opportunity to get back in there and when Darren approached me first and Pat Howard followed it up, you start to believe you're back on the horse."

His Queensland exit, when he still had a year remaining on his contract, was a shock to the system and left him "embarrassed more than anything".  

"There weren't that many jobs out there when I was released," Law said. "To sit down and work out what you're going to do, you've got to put food on the table and keep your family operating on a level even keel.

"When nothing starts arising on the cricketing horizon you've got to look elsewhere."

Law has been forced to put the family home on the market to stay afloat. He said he has moved on, but there is still maroon blood in his veins. Despite the manner of his departure, he still wants to see the Bulls roar.

"I am not ashamed of what has happened. There are people going through it every day," Law told News Corp.

"You put your heart and soul into something for 16 years, then you coach, but there is no resentment there from me. I don't hold any grudges. I have moved on.

"I still want to help them and hope that one day I can in some capacity but it was tough.''

A man such as this, with more than 27,000 first-class runs to his name, a Baggy Green cap and proven international coaching experience after stints with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, was never going to sit idle for long.

Law returned to coaching as an assistant on the Australia A tour of India last year, working closely with the batsmen in a series that saw Usman Khawaja start his journey back towards Australia's Test team.

Law then spent time in Bangladesh, working with the under-19 team as the country hosted the Under-19 World Cup that Cricket Australia opted out of sending a team to because of security concerns.

This job, however, is the "icing on the cake" and a man who "hates losing" will again give everything for the team.

"I'm not there to prove a point, I'm there to help these guys be the best players they can be and if I can add something to it I will," Law said.

"To stand here now and say 'this is what we're going to do', that's not my style. I'll get in there, we'll work it out, the boys will tell me what they want to do and we'll try and achieve it."

Law played just the one Test, against Sri Lanka in Perth in 1995, but doesn't have a career average – he finished unbeaten on 54 – as Michael Slater scored 219 and Mark Waugh 111 in Australia’s innings and 36 runs win.

Law says Test match batting has changed markedly since those days, with the pace at which runs are scored against the red ball a key difference.

"It's not uncommon to see 150 runs in a session these days, particularly on the first morning," Law said.

"But it's about tempering that aggression with a solid defence. If you've got a solid defence you can bat longer and the longer we bat the more runs we score. "

It's a philosophy that strips the game back to basics, and Law will be especially keen to see batsmen gorged on a diet of T20 competitions and limited-overs contests spend considerable time in the middle come the Test matches.

"What they need to do is stay there, and make sure if they're in then they are the ones scoring the runs or finishing off the innings," Law said of Australia's top six.

"Don't be happy with 100s, be happy with 200s and 150 not outs. That's what I'll be looking to reinforce."

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