Harry Dixon is only 18 but is already being likened to David Warner, his childhood idol
'He inspired me': The U19 star hoping to emulate Warner
Even before Harry Dixon got one of the best views of David Warner's memorable double-century last summer, the teenager dreamed he might one day tread a similar path to the dashing opening batter.
Still weeks shy of his 18th birthday, Dixon's status as one of the country's most promising young cricketers saw him called in to shadow the Test side in the lead-in to his hometown Test against South Africa, and then stay on as one of the team's drinks-runners.
Dixon picked Warner's brains at a Christmas Day training session, but the real present arrived in the following days when he got a behind-the-scenes pass to one of the best innings of the veteran's career.
Fighting debilitating cramps and heat exhaustion as the MCG's cauldron amplified sweltering temperatures, Warner's 255-ball 200 was an encapsulation of the attributes that have made him one of Australia's best Test openers; elite fitness, naked aggression, sheer determination.
Those same traits had prompted Dixon to model his entire game on Warner while growing up in Melbourne's south-eastern suburbs.
"Coming through the ranks as a youngster, I've always idolised him," the now 18-year-old told cricket.com.au. "He's the reason I bat the way I do today, he inspired me.
"It was amazing to experience it to be honest – to be in the same changing room as your idol when he's making 200 was incredible."
A Warner-sized hole in the Test team will soon be opened up when the 37-year-old hangs up his Baggy Green this summer and Dixon hopes he can one day be the man to fill it.
He knows he is some way off that, of course, given he is still yet to make his senior domestic debut.
Yet good judges insist it is only a matter of time and, since Dixon's close encounter with his childhood hero during the Boxing Day Test, the left-hander has gone some way to show he is cut from the same cloth.
Like Warner did against Pakistan at the SCG in 2017, Dixon blazed a century inside a single session when he took a young England attack apart in Worcester during the Australia Under-19 Ashes tour earlier this year.
"It's the most satisfaction I've got out of a hundred, especially against the red ball in England where it's a lot more challenging against the swinging ball," said Dixon, who already has a first-grade century for St Kilda having debuted for the club aged just 12.
That UK campaign capped an extraordinary run of form against England's U19s. He followed that 209-ball 167 with a second-innings 87, and then scores of 51 and 105 in the second Test at Northampton.
Against the same opposition in February, he torched 148 off 125 in a one-dayer at Allan Border Field, and then 84no off 56 in a T20 at the same venue.
His youth form has him in the mix to make his KFC BBL debut in the coming weeks, having secured a two-year deal with the Melbourne Renegades, while a state contract with Victoria seems certain to follow next season.
And only months after Warner's starring role in Australia's latest men's ODI title, Dixon too will have the chance to win a World Cup, albeit the youth equivalent, when the ICC's U19s pinnacle event is held in South Africa next month.
He shapes as a certain inclusion in the Aussies' 15-player squad for that tournament after his exploits with the U19s team last year, while he also added a pair of half-centuries in recent weeks as captain of Victoria Metro in their U19 National Championships tilt in Albury, leading his side to a third-place finish.
Even Chris Rogers, Dixon's likely future state coach at Victoria and one of the most credentialled of the many opening partners Warner has had during his long Test tenure, acknowledges the likeness.
"I can see some similarities with Davey with how he uses that bottom hand to hit the ball to different areas," Rogers, who has observed the rise of the former Melbourne Grammar student through Victoria's junior ranks, told cricket.com.au.
"He can hit balls on the top of fourth stump through cover point, or pump them through mid-wicket, which is what Davey has always been known for.
"I just think he's got a rare skill when it comes to that stuff. He can score off balls that others can't.
"Other kids will only hit towards the leg-side, because that's what they can do. They wait for bad balls, which you get enough of, and hit them through mid-wicket. But he can hit through the off-side.
"I think he's got a point of difference to a lot of the others coming through the system and I hope he continues to develop that."
Rogers believes Dixon's technique requires minimal tinkering. Instead, the coach sees the young gun's biggest challenge over the coming years as adapting it to counter faster and more accurate bowling at first-class level.
He expects Dixon to get more second XI opportunities for Victoria. While Dixon's next major opportunities will come against the white ball in the BBL and then the U19 World Cup, the longest format remains his favourite.
"That has flattered me a bit because I grew up idolising David Warner and modelling my game around him, so that's nice to hear," said Dixon when told of Rogers' comparison of him to Warner.
"I've wanted to be an aggressive player and following in his footsteps would be nice in that sense.
"I've always wanted to do that (bat aggressively). I've never had much patience if I'm honest. Just wanting to hit the ball hard is something I've always done.
"I'm not sure if it sets me apart from others, because there's a lot of others who do it very well, but it's nice to be put in the same breath as him. I'm definitely far from as good as him."
If Dixon can close that gap, it may rank as one of Warner's most important legacies.
KFC BBL|13 standings
| Team | M | W | L | T | N/R | NRR | Ded. | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1
HEA
|
10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0.972 | 0 | 16 |
|
2
SIX
|
10 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.339 | 0 | 14 |
|
3
SCO
|
10 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0.725 | 0 | 13 |
|
4
STR
|
10 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0.331 | 0 | 11 |
|
5
HUR
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -0.268 | 0 | 8 |
|
6
STA
|
10 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | -1.051 | 0 | 8 |
|
7
REN
|
10 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | -0.288 | 0 | 6 |
|
8
THU
|
10 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 2 | -0.652 | 0 | 4 |
M: Matches played
W: Wins
L: Losses
T: Ties
N/R: No results
NRR: Net Run Rate
Ded.: Deductions
PTS: Total points
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