Backyard battle precedes 'epic' Shield duel

Just days after reliving his childhood by taking on his brother Wes in the backyard, Ashton Agar survived a brutal bouncer onslaught from his younger sibling to put his hand up for a long-term middle-order berth with Western Australia.

The languid left-hander's promotion to No.6 could hardly have worked out better as he stroked his first Marsh Sheffield Shield century in almost five years, with his unbeaten 114 helping WA take a 301-run lead over South Australia after two days' play at Karen Rolton Oval.

With allrounders Mitch Marsh (injured) and Marcus Stoinis (Indian Premier League) missing from the early Shield rounds, Agar seized his opportunity up the order as he shared in an unbroken 266-run stand with Josh Inglis (153no).

"I've always wanted the opportunity to bat higher in the order and was stoked when I got the opportunity to do it," Agar told cricket.com.au after play in Adelaide.

"The opportunity came with Mitch and 'Stoin' obviously not here, and there was a bit of a gap there so fortunately I was able to fill it.

"I'd love to (bat at six long term) and that's given me a lot of confidence in that position to go out and do that."

Agar's previous two first-class tons came in the opening half of the 2015-16 Sheffield Shield season, but he had only passed fifty twice more in his 14 games over the ensuing four seasons as his burgeoning international white-ball career sidelined him from large chunks of recent domestic summers.

As he showed England in that famous Ashes knock at Trent Bridge seven years ago, Agar has always been a few notches above the 'handy tailender' tag that most Shield No.8s enjoy.

His easy-on-the-eye backswing, and the little tap on the crease right before the bowler releases the ball, has often suggested he's as natural a batter as many of those batting above him.

Across a bit over two sessions of cricket at Karen Rolton Oval, he displayed another element of his game that highlighted his middle-order credentials; the ability to ride up and down the gears.

He had gotten off to a flyer on day one when he crunched 35 off his first 36 deliveries but was forced to take his medicine when the Redbacks took the second new ball, scoring just 16 from his next 66 balls.

"I've made a hundred (batting at) seven before, I just have to go about it the same way I would any innings," said Agar.

"I tried to still play my shots and respect the good ball.

"I'm not stressing about any external noise about, 'Is he a batter? Is he a bowler?' I'm everything."

After flying home from Australia's limited-overs tour of England last month, Agar, rather than heading home to Perth, remained in Adelaide following his two weeks of hotel quarantine and stayed with Wes for a week before the pair joined their respective Shield squads.

State border restrictions have hit the close-knit Agar family harder than many in recent months; Wes and Ashton's parents John and Sonia still live in Melbourne, as does their other sibling, Will, as the two older brothers pursue cricket careers in hundreds of kilometres away.

Having not seen any of his family for nearly eight months, Ashton said his week with Wes proved a blessing.

"We played backyard cricket and we absolutely loved it," said Agar. "It brought back great feelings and memories, and we could do it for hours, except we hit a couple of balls over the fence and that was it.

"He bowls quick down there as well."

Despite their close bond, Wes showed no mercy as he targeted Ashton with a sustained spell of short-pitched bowling on Sunday in an entertaining duel that ultimately finished in a stalemate.

"It was epic," said Ashton, who scored 26 from the 41 balls he faced off Wes. "I've got a lot of respect for him. To run in and bowl 30 odd overs on a flat pitch and go at not too many runs and bowl fast spells is a great effort.

"It makes it so much more difficult when it's your brother. I don't think we really like battling against each other so much. The novelty was fun at the start but now it's tough work."

A similarly engaging duel during last season's Marsh One-Day Cup (also at Karen Rolton Oval) had ended with the elder brother's face smeared in blood from a powerful shot off Wes' bat, and Agar again required medical attention at this venue.

It was left-arm quick Nick Winter, who continued Wes' bouncer barrage from around the wicket, who struck a sharp blow to Ashton’s helmet, but he was able to continue batting (and then bowl later in the afternoon) following a prolonged examination from medical staff.

"My head's good. I've had a bit of a headache for a while now but my concentration is really good and I felt fine out there," said Agar. "We'll monitor how I'm going."