‘You are an absolute idiot’ – Nathan Lyon reveals wife’s reaction to his decision to bat with calf injury during Lord’s Test

Nathan Lyon. (Photo Source: Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Nathan Lyon is a vital cog in the Australian bowling attack. When he suffered an unfortunate calf injury while fielding in the first innings of the second Test at Lord’s, cricket enthusiasts thought that he would play no further part in the Ashes. However, the off-spinner shocked the world by hobbling out to bat at No. 11 for Australia in the second innings.

He scored four runs in 13 balls with the bat and added 15 runs alongside Mitchell Starc. While it was confirmed that Lyon was ruled out of the remaining fixtures, his bravery to go out and bat with such a severe injury garnered rich praise. However, the 35-year-old recently said that his wife and skipper Pat Cummins blasted his idea of going out to bat when he had informed them initially. It was head coach Andrew McDonald who supported Lyon’s decision to bat with the injury.

“Em (Lyon’s wife, Emma) was over there with me and I said that morning ‘just so you know, I’m going to bat if required’ and she just looked at me and said ‘you are an absolute idiot – I’m helping you in the shower and everything like that, you’re an idiot. I went to the ground, spoke to the medical team in the morning, they said ‘nah, you’re not batting’, so I went to Pat (Cummins) and Pat said ‘you’re not batting, Gaz, get it out of your head,” Lyon said on the Willows Talk podcast.

“I went to Ron (McDonald) and said ‘I am batting’ and he goes ‘good, I’m thinking the same thing. So Andrew McDonald was the one who said yep, and I said ‘I need you to talk to the medical team’, so he went to talk to the medical team. I knew the risks, I couldn’t (injure) it any worse,” he continued.

I knew I was out for the next 10-12 weeks: Nathan Lyon

Nathan Lyon stated that he knew he had a major tear in his calf and had no chance of playing the following matches in the Ashes. He mentioned that he wouldn’t have gone out to bat if the injury was major as it could have jeopardised further participation in the series.

“If it was a minor tear, I probably wouldn’t have gone out to bat understanding we had a decent break and may have missed the third Test and be right for the fourth and fifth Tests,” he said.

“But I knew I was out for the next 10-12 weeks, so I took a couple of tablets, got strapped from my knee down, couldn’t move my foot at all, and hobbled out, stood in the Long Room and waited to bat,” Lyon added.