Nathan Lyon was in a “very dark place” after a calf injury ended his Ashes tour prematurely but now Australia’s most successful off-spinner says his body is stronger than ever declaring his burning desire to head back to England in 2027.
Lyon, who has taken the eighth-most wickets in Test history, played in the first two matches of this year’s English tour before he was forced home with a serious calf injury.
While he “absolutely loved” seeing England lose to India at the World Cup on Sunday night, he was in a very different state of mind as he watched his Test teammates cling on to retain the Ashes a few months ago.
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“I was in a very dark place when the Ashes were still on,” Lyon said.
“I struggled. I probably wasn’t the nicest person to be around, so my wife probably struggled a little bit.
“It’s just the love of the game and the care factor I have for the Australian cricket team, but also my teammates.
“When you see them not achieving what they set out to achieve – we retained the Ashes, but we missed a big opportunity (to win the series) – and that probably hurts me the most that we weren’t able to win that when we were 2-0 up.
“The last three games while sitting at home, I found it really hard.
“It was a proper mental challenge, but it allowed me to sit at home with my family and reset, but also freshen up and look at it as an opportunity to get better and understand what I need to do to keep going.”
The first step towards the 2027 Ashes will begin next year with Lyon in the process of finalising a deal to join County side Lancashire where he would become teammates with English legend Jimmy Anderson.
Lyon will be pushing 40 when that series starts, but he says the calf injury has made him hungrier than ever to tick off two major milestones.
“It’s probably extended it (my career),” he said.
“I’ve always said I wanted to win in India and England, and I haven’t been able to do that, so it looks like we’ve got to go again.”
The plan for his more immediate future is two play two more Sheffield Shield matches at the SCG, with Lyon keen to squeeze a Big Bash game in for his news side the Renegades during a packed Australian summer.
Lyon says he’s happy with how he’s bowling after he made a successful return for the Blues in both the 50-over and four-day formats of the game earlier this month.
He wants to cram is as much cricket as possible over the summer, which includes a BBL appearance for the Renegades against his former side the Sixers on December 8.
“I haven’t spoken to Cricket Australia or the Renegades yet, but my plan is to be available for selection,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to joining the Renegades.
“I basically got sacked from the Sixers, but after that the opportunity came with the Renegades and I absolutely jumped at it.
“Victorians say it’s the number one sporting state, so it’s pretty amazing to hopefully be one of them, so maybe they can call me a Victorian at the Boxing Day Test match and sing those songs they used to for Sidds (Peter Siddle) and Patto (James Pattinson).”
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