Jason Gillespie is excited by what he's seen from Australia's National Indigenous squad
Dizzy: I'd love to work with Indigenous XI
He's worked in distant locales such as Zimbabwe and Yorkshire, and now current Papua New Guinea coach Jason Gillespie says he would love to do something a little closer to home by helping out Australia's National Indigenous squad during his coaching career.
Gillespie became Australia's first recognised Indigenous Test cricketer when he donned the Baggy Green in 1996, and believes today's pathways and opportunities for Indigenous kids around the country are better than they have ever been.
"I'd love sometime in the future to be involved with the Australian Indigenous side," Gillespie told cricket.com.au on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, where the PNG side he is coaching on an interim basis has been playing matches against Australian state teams as well as the National Indigenous XI.
"Cricket Australia are obviously putting more resources into Indigenous cricket, with the National Indigenous Championships, the tours to the UK next year, and that's exciting.
"From what I've seen this past week or so, there's some very fine players representing the Indigenous XI."
Image Id: E4D5CF6528F747C58781624A041CA34E Image Caption: Gillespie presents Indigenous cricketer Ashleigh Gardner with her Australian cap in February // GettyWhile football fields around the country have more traditionally played host to the sporting brilliance of countless Indigenous Australians, cricket is attracting more and more players, with Cricket Australia's national talent manager Greg Chappell recently pointing out a rapidly increasing pool of Indigenous players performing at high levels all over the country.
"In recent years we have seen a noticeable rise in Indigenous cricketers coming through the talent pathway," Chappell said in July.
"Now more than 60 male and female indigenous cricketers are playing First XI Premier Cricket and several are having an impact in the WBBL and BBL."
Gillespie's legacy with Australia has also been followed in recent years by male players Dan Christian and Scott Boland, who have both appeared in green and gold in limited-overs formats, while 20-year-old allrounder Ash Gardner this year became the second Indigenous woman after Faith Thomas in 1958 to represent Australia, and has now played 10 ODIs and three T20Is.
"Aussie Rules is very popular within the Indigenous communities and I know Cricket Australia are striving to tap into that love of sport and extend it to cricket," Gillespie added.
"There's some incredibly talented athletes out there, and I'd love to see some of those kids pick up a cricket bat and a ball and get out there and play.
"I think with more resources being poured into Indigenous cricket, that bodes well for the future and I'm looking forward to seeing the next Australian cricketer of Indigenous descent playing, and I don't think that's too far away."
National Indigenous XI coach Jeff Cook says the recent matches in Queensland are exactly the sort of contests his players need in terms of exposure to a higher standard of cricket as they look to reach that level themselves.
"These games mean a hell of a lot," Cook said. "We always want bigger games. Playing games against Queensland, Victoria, PNG and the National Performance Squad, it tells our players where they're at.
"A lot of these guys are in squads with their states, or on the verge of Futures teams, so it gives them an indication of what's needed in order to get up to first-class cricket."
Next year, Cricket Australia will send both a men's and women's National Indigenous squad on a tour of the United Kingdom to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the 1868 Aboriginal team that became the first sporting team from Australia to tour internationally.
Cook describes the move as "a real shot in the arm for our program", while Christian, who will captain the men's team on that tour, says it can only add to the promotion of cricket in the Indigenous community.
"It's obviously a great honour for me to be a part of it and it's nice recognition for the guys who play in the National Indigenous Championships," he told cricket.com.au.
"Hopefully it'll promote the sport a little bit more in the Indigenous community and promote those Indigenous players who are on the first-class fringes around the country at the moment.
"I think it's fantastic. There are a few guys in and around a few state sides so it should be a strong team."