Dream alive for Klinger

MICHAEL Klinger has been named in the Australia A cricket squad that will head to England in July to take on the Brits in a one-day series.

“It’s definitely exciting,” Klinger told The AJN from England, where he is currently playing county cricket for Worcestershire.
“I got a call overnight and my phone was on silent, so then I received a text message from chairman of selectors John Inverarity telling me that I was in the Australian A team.

“I’ve played in an Australia A series before, but last time it was in Australia so this is going to be my first tour.”

Klinger, 31, is a former under-19 Australian captain and has scored prolifically in all forms of the game for South Australia in recent years. He led the Redbacks to victory in last season’s one-day competition and was drafted to the now defunct Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the 2011 Indian Premier League auction.

More recently Klinger has found form playing for the Worcestershire County Cricket Club in England, where he has already scored a century and a half-century.

“I wasn’t quite sure where I was at with the selectors, because even though I was performing well, I didn’t know I was in their thoughts.”

Inverarity said the sheer weight of numbers for Klinger had won the classy right-hander a spot in the squad to take on England.
“Klinger’s sustained good performances over a number of seasons has been recognised and rewarded, and he will open the innings with [Test opener] Ed Cowan,” Inverarity said.

The news is a fillip for Klinger’s chances of representing his country at the highest level, something Australia’s best Jewish cricketer said he hasn’t given up on.

“I wasn’t quite sure where I was at with the selectors, because even though I was performing well, I didn’t know I was in their thoughts.”

“You need luck to break into the team, because as long as the team is performing well and individuals are scoring runs, then there are no spots up for grabs.”

Klinger said he feels privileged to be able to represent Australia A.

“I certainly realise that I’m extremely fortunate to be doing what I’m doing and I feel very lucky that I can do something I love as a job.

“I also know that I’ve done a lot of hard work to get to where I am, and that the last four or five years of cricket I have played have been a reward for the hard work that I did when I was 13 and 14 years old.”

JOSHUA LEVI