When Andrew Tye was handed the microphone after his sensational bowling spell against Rising Pune Supergiant on Friday night, the Gujarat Lions pacer made sure to remind the number of matches he had to sit in the dugout before making his debut in the Indian Premier League.
The Australia pacer was part of the now-suspended Chennai Super Kings outfit but mainly warmed the benches for a couple of the season. He was signed by Gujarat Lions in the last season but his fortune did not change. He was finally given the green light to play in his team’s third game this year and the right-arm pacer made sure to make his franchises realise what they were missing.
He celebrated his debut with stunning figures of 5/17 including a hat-trick as his team, Gujarat Lions beat Rising Pune Supergiant by 7-wickets to get off the mark this season. Tye first accounted for the dangerous looking Rahul Tripathi and Ben Stokes in his first two spells before dismissing Ankit Sharma, Manoj Tiwary and Shardul Thakur in on three consecutive deliveries in the final over to become the first debutant to take a hat-trick in the history of the tournament.
“I waited for 34 matches before I got my first game in the Indian Premier League. I came in with pretty much nothing to lose. I knew I was on a hat-trick and I was happy that I executed the deliveries spot on. It is a rare feat to have two hat-tricks in a day,” Tye said after the match.
Earlier in the day, Samuel Badree, playing his first game for Royal Challengers Bangalore, also took a hat-trick against Mumbai Indians in a losing cause.
Tye did not sound disappointed after missing so many games in the league and instead counted on the positives of sharing the dressing room with some of the finest in the business.
“Even when you are not playing any game in the IPL, it is a great place to develop your game and learn from the best. My cricket has developed in the last couple of years. Playing with the international stars and the Indian players, it only helps in the development,” Tye said.
Known for his clever mixing of pace, Tye said he had to work hard for several years to reach this level
“It has taken me 5-6 years of hard work to get to the stage where I am in. If you practice in the right way and in the right intent, then the slower ball comes out right,” said Tye who also took a hat-trick in the last edition of the Big Bash League.
The victory also helped Gujarat Lions to recover from the poor start and register their maiden win this season. The table-toppers of last season were under immense pressure after losing their opening two games against Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively.
“We went out with a certain attitude. We wanted to win as we did not have a good start. Things were not working out for us. The first over from Praveen Kumar and the catch Suresh Raina took to set the tone and the energy flew in from there,” Tye said.