Marcus North

Marcus North was nearly 30 when following a long grind in domestic cricket it seemed that chances of representing Australia were slowly but surely fading. But the Victoria thoroughbred persisted and was rewarded with a national call-up in 2009.

Playing together with Mike Hussey in his younger days, North first made his Pura Cup debut for Western Australia against Victoria. One of the highlights in the early part of his career was a 200 and 134 on Australia’s youth team tour to Pakistan. He was also involved in a record partnership with Chris Rogers at the WACA. He failed to break into the Australian team owing to stiff competition and was unlucky to miss out on several occasions even after notable performances.

However in February 2009, North was finally called up for Australia’s tour of South Africa. After excelling in his tour match, he made his debut in the first Test against South Africa. Putting on brilliant partnerships with Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson, North went on to compile his maiden Test century. But, limited opportunities at the international level propelled him back to domestic cricket and the southpaw turned his attention towards Twenty20 cricket. In 2012, he was signed by the Perth Scorchers ahead of the Champions LeagueT20.