Hayden, Australia’s explosive left-hand batter for many years, has put himself at the top of the game with his exquisite timing, skill, and aggressive shot selection, taking on many of cricket’s pacers and instilling fear in many opposing teams with brute force. Today, we look at the Top 10 Things you did not know about Matthew Hayden.
1. Early Life As A Surfer
Before cricket, Matt Hayden loved surfing, and in his younger years, as a Queenslander, in between domestic cricket, Hayden surfed among high tides and even once competed in a junior-level surfing tournament. Hayden was fortunate to have been in Queensland, which is famous for its beautiful beaches and the sight of the ocean. Surfing was integral to Hayden’s life as it brought him a sense of freedom, adventure, and connection with the waves. During his free time, Hayden would often go surfing, even after his retirement. Surfing taught Hayden to adapt to all conditions and remain resilient in any situation.
2. Early Cricketing Days
Matthew Hayden, while playing for Queensland, once formed a record partnership with former England and Manchester United defender Gary Neville when he played cricket, occasionally in Australian domestic competitions. Both put up a 250+ run partnership in a domestic match. Gary was due to get out at 20 runs when he failed to connect a short ball, but the fielder dropped the catch. Hayden, concerned about his fellow batter, consoled a terrified Neville not to give up and play on to the end of the day. Neville recently spoke of the importance of that talk with Hayden. Neville took that motivation to heart and stayed on till the end of the day. The next day, both batters struck out brilliantly and scored centuries.
3. Athletic Career
Matthew Hayden has an impressive athletic record in field events. He competed in the long jumps and sprinting events and has won medals in many sports. He has also competed for the Australian U-19 championship in the long jump.
4. Australia Rules Football Career
Hayden has a connection to Australian rules football and is an avid follower of the sport. Early in his cricketing career, Hayden played in a club, which was in Victorian Football League (VFL). He has played as a reserve player in the team. The sport developed his physicality, and refined his agility which was very helpful in his cricketing career.
5. A Late Bloomer
Hayden was a late bloomer, making his debut at 26 so late due to Hayden being sent to play in the domestic circuits early on in his career due to many better openers emerging in Australia. Many people doubted him, questioning his age and whether he would have any impact after being so old. But Hayden worked on his physicality, fitness, and mindset, correcting his technical flaws, and developed a more aggressive and fearless approach toward bowlers. Hayden’s moment came in the 2001 Ashes Series, where he scored a record 1000 runs in total, scoring centuries and destroying English bowlers. Hayden was in pristine form in 2001, helping his team win 16 consecutive test matches and narrowly miss out against India.
6. 2007 World Cup
The 2007 World Cup was the most exciting tournament for Matt Hayden since, after a lack of form, Hayden was a beast in the World Cup, scoring many runs and dominating bowlers with his batting. He was essential in Australia winning the World Cup in 2007. Hayden scored 657 runs in the tournament, with three centuries and six fifties, his most remembered inning coming against England in the quarterfinals, where Hayden smashed the whole England pace attack and scored a brilliant 150, with four sixes and 14 boundaries. Hayden’s inning set the tone for the knockout stage, and he followed it up with a century against South Africa in the semi-final. After the World Cup win, Hayden went on a run-streak scoring runs at almost an unstoppable rate, smashing bowlers of all countries, and had the best years of his career at the ripe old age of 34.
7. Fearless
Matthew Hayden was a fearless opener who dominated bowlers with aggressive batting, brute power, and mentality. He often stepped out of the crease, smashing the bowler for monstrous sixes and breaking the bowler’s confidence. His fearless approach and imposing physicality terrified bowlers, forcing them to change their strategy. Hayden's fearless batting came in South Africa in 2004, where he broke his own record score of 375 and scored 380 runs, taking Australia to a mammoth total. Hayden’s imposing and often frightening physical presence and aggressive approach to batting made him a fine opener for Australia.
8. Entrepreneurial Values
After retirement from cricket, Matt Hayden took up entrepreneurship, establishing a company, “The Hayden Way" which focused on high-quality cricket products and training equipment for cricketers.
9. Cooking Passion
Matthew Hayden is an avid cook and has had the passion since his early days in cricket. In his domestic cricket days, Hayden carried a set of utensils, a cookbook, and various spices to cook food for himself and his teammates. Hayden has some knowledge of many cuisines, including Indian, English, German, and Italian cuisines, and has once hosted a team lunch, inviting the whole Aussie team, along with their families, and also the team managers, the team kit man as well as all employees working for the Australian Cricket Club. Hayden has also appeared in MasterChef Australia, as a contestant. He has made many guest appearances in cooking shows and has published two books, teaching his culinary skills to people worldwide.
10. Philanthropic Efforts
Matthew Hayden is a philanthropist, often involved in many awareness-raising campaigns in Australia, and is a member of the McGrath Foundation, dedicated to helping patients suffering from cancer. Hayden provides education, healthcare, growth, and development to several underprivileged kids in Australia and worldwide. The dedication to philanthropy and societal service had a positive impact on Hayden as a person.
