Punters cash in on Josh Hazlewood's test debut for Australia
Friends of fast bowler's dad win A$50,000 each on a bet that was made nearly nine years ago
Josh Hazlewood's Australian test cricket debut on Wednesday brought joy to a group of punters who placed a 500-1 bet on him playing such a game when he was still a teenager, reports said.
Friends of Hazlewood's dad Trevor reportedly placed a A$100 wager with British bookmakers almost nine years ago that Josh would become a test player.
They have now won A$50,000 (HK$317,550) each after he took the field for his maiden test against India at a sweltering Gabba.
He was 15 at the time when they put the bet on. They got odds of 500-1 and they all had A$100 on. The guys were in England at the time and that is when they put the bet
Hazlewood, now 23, took two for 44 but Australia are picking up the pieces after a punishing day in the field as India took the upper hand in the second test. The tourists reached 311 for four after winning the toss on the opening day with opener Murali Vijay leading the way with 144.
Trevor Hazlewood confirmed the story, but would not reveal the identities of the gamblers, believed to be from Tamworth in New South Wales near where Hazlewood grew up.
"He was 15 at the time when they put the bet on. They got odds of 500-1 and they all had A$100 on," Trevor told The Brisbane Courier-Mail newspaper. "The guys were in England at the time and that is when they put the bet. They bet Josh would play test cricket before he was 30."
The story is reminiscent of that of Irish golfer Rory McIlroy's father who won £180,000 (HK$2.19 million) in July with friends on a bet placed a decade earlier that his son would win the British Open.