Jackson Bird

Having toiled away in Sydney’s Grade competition for several years, Jackson Bird headed south to Tasmania in 2011 to seek greater opportunities at state level.

The move couldn’t have worked out any better, with the right-armer taking 53 wickets at an average of 16.00 in his debut season to be named Sheffield Shield Player of the Year.

An international debut soon followed in the 2012 Boxing Day Test against Sri Lanka, where he took four wickets, before he picked up seven more scalps and a man-of-the-match award the following week at the SCG.

A steady fast-medium bowler who relies on accuracy and slight movement off the seam, he was a part of Australia’s unsuccessful Ashes Tour in 2013 before he was laid low by a back injury.

While he has shone with the red ball, Bird has also proven himself to be an accomplished performer in the Big Bash League for Melbourne Stars. 

Bird earned a recall to the national set up during the 2016 tour of New Zealand and played a crucial role in the second Test in Christchurch, grabbing 5-59 in the second innings and seven wickets for the match as Australia claimed a thumping victory.