The mateship of the green and gold

When they're not holding hands in team photos, cracking each other up or unabashedly playing out their bromance on live television during a match, Australia’s Adam Zampa and Marcus Stoinis do a bit of touristing or bond over coffee – Zampa has his own precious set-up in his room, and his mates are invited.

Nathan Lyon joins the likes of Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc for a cuppa on the eve of a match: “I’m part of the [fast bowling] cartel even if they don’t like it!” he jokes. Aaron Finch and Glenn Maxwell, meanwhile, go a way back, sharing history and a fondness for Japanese food.

In the cauldron of elite cricket, of travelling the world playing this game of bat and ball, friendships are quickly formed (and quite as easily broken). But this Australian side for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019 has gone beyond individual friendships to have a thread of a more collective “mateship” running through it. They believe it is what defines them this World Cup.

"This is probably the tightest team I’ve ever been a part of," declares Lyon to the ICC. "You get a lot of care, a lot of love, a lot of laughter, which helps you play a great brand of cricket."

On and off the field, the defending champions, no-hopers a year ago, their best players flayed and suspended, and their culture brought to question, look different from the side brushed aside 5-0 in a one-day international series in England last year. Laughter punctuates the team huddles, there’s an emphasis on humility, their sense of humour is intact, and they’re confident – in themselves and their new culture. It has been a work in progress these past 18 months, and will be tested on the global stage over the next few weeks.

“We say ‘we’ instead of ‘me’,” Zampa explains their philosophy, while for Stoinis, it’s about “making sure we enjoy each other’s company and getting away from the game a bit.

“The way we get on off the field, the way we look after each other on the field, the way we celebrate every wicket, the most fun I have playing cricket is being with my mates, watching them do well," the all-rounder says.

Usman Khawaja adds, “We try to look after each other, no matter who. Not just saying it, but if someone’s down, you go up to them and say, ‘right, what’s going on?’

“The guys have been doing little things behind the scenes, we’re doing little bits for each other without even asking, [and it’s] made the team really strong off the field.”

The shadow of the Newlands sand-paper scandal is evident. Stoinis agrees these values were reinforced by those incidents, which saw Steve Smith and David Warner suspended for 12 months. Australia, under coach Justin Langer, have been at pains to redefine themselves, while at the same time rallying around the returning duo, whether in the media or in the face of fans’ taunting.

In other words, they’re standing by their mates; as Stoinis puts it: “You want to make sure they’re under the wing of the team, that we all go through that whatever we go through from now on, together.”

“It’s not like we’re trying to be something we’re not,” insists Khawaja. “You can’t fabricate friendship or mateship. It’s one of those things you just can’t force. It’s come naturally to the guys over the last year or so.”

It was only fitting then that the team visited Gallipoli, Turkey, on the way to the tournament in England and Wales. Thousands of Australian and New Zealand Army Corps gave their life at the site during the First World War, and since then, the ‘Anzac spirit’ has been recognised and celebrated. Steve Waugh took his men there before the 2001 Ashes, and Langer and Co. recreated the pilgrimage.

“Obviously, we’re not going to war, but going to Gallipoli, and seeing what the Anzacs did for our country, seeing what they did for mateship, seeing how they supported each other, that’s going to be a big part of our tour,” says Stoinis. “We’re not going to war, we can’t take it that seriously, but it’s definitely something we should be conscious about.

“Mateship is so important. Maybe it’s not always been as important as it is now. But your perspective changes as you go through things. Cricket doesn’t last forever. Your memory of how good a player you were doesn’t last forever, but the relationships you build with people, the friendships you create, the support you give your teammates, that’s the most important thing.”