How the Aussie skipper helped a young fan through lockdown

News of a return to remote learning for Melbourne schools has been met with resounding frustration from parents, teachers and students, but one young Victorian has Australian cricket captain Aaron Finch to thank for showing him what's possible when studying from home.

The recent increase in COVID-19 cases in Victoria's capital means around 700,000 students won't be able to attend classes in person when term three begins next week, just like during term two when remote learning was introduced as part of a state-wide lockdown.

Combined with the absence of community sport, learning from home in term two proved particularly challenging for young cricket lover Alex Altube (pictured above), a grade two student at Blackburn Lake Primary School in Melbourne's east.

At least it was until Finch stepped in to help.

Through Alex's teacher, Australia's one-day and T20 skipper sent the young student a video message asking him to complete a special project during lockdown, a cricket magazine explaining the rules of the game, the fielding positions and how to play.

And Kathryn Taylor, Alex's teacher, said the result was some of the best work he'd produced all year.

"He was pretty blown away to have Aaron Finch send him a personal message," she said.

"(He was struggling) with the whole circumstance of being at home and not being able to participate in his normal sport ... that's his outlet, usually.

"Obviously he had a lot of support with it at home, but it was great work and he did come back to school quite engaged.

"He's a fanatical cricketer, he loves his cricket. That's all they do all recess and lunch time, they talk about it. He's a big fan and he enjoyed doing that side of things with his work."

While they rarely get any publicity for it - nor do they ask for it - Australia's men's and women's players regularly reach out to cricket lovers in the community to help them through challenging times.

Finch said his gesture, as small as it was for him, was a reminder of the influence he and all of Australia's top players can have, particularly on young fans.

"Things like that are really important and I don't think we understand the impact we have on other people sometimes by doing small things like that," he said.

"The impact you can have and the smile you can put of people's faces, it's enormous.

"I know JL (Australia's men’s coach Justin Langer) does a lot of that for people. He'll ring around the boys and get everyone to send in a video message of support. There was one just recently, a young kid who's battling cancer who is a friend of a friend of JL's.

"Just being able to help out and give some extra motivation, it's good when you see the results like that."