Billy Stanlake

A tall fast bowler with a raw pace is always a cherished commodity for any team. But with the height comes the injury concerns. The career of Australian speedster Billy Stanlake has been quite similar as prolonged injuries have shortened his career so far. He is extremely tall and an extract bounce from any surface. 

Having made his domestic debut in the 2015-16 season, Stanlake was fast-tracked into the Australian side winning a surprise call-up in the 2017 ODI series against Pakistan. However back injuries have been a constant enemy for Stanlake which has halted his progress both at the domestic and at the international level. He got noticed pretty early on in his career. His ability to generate steep bounce and zip of the deck made him get noticed. 

He also got a BBL contract soon after and was quite impressive in his debut season. He managed to hurry quite a few top class batsmen and he was touted as a real prospect for the future. However, he had few chinks in his armour and with a string of injuries his injuries haven’t quite taken off. With age still on his side, Stanlake will look to remain injury-free and bounce back from scratch. 

Stanlake was born in Hervey Bay in Queensland and played Australian rules football for the Hervey Bay Bombers. He switched to cricket when his family relocated to the Gold Coast. Billy played for the Southport-Labrador while attending the Southport School. 

Stanlake was part of the Australian U 19 team in both the 2012 and 2014 World Cups. However, he sustained a foot injury which forced him to miss the 2012 U19 World Cup. He almost suffered the same fate two years later. However this time, he recovered in time to participate in the tournament. During the World Cup, he was the most productive Australian bowlers. He finished with the best average 19.40 and bagged 5 wickets at an economy rate of 3.34. 

After impressive performances at the junior level, Stanlake was offered a contract for the Queensland state cricket team for the 2014-15 season. He made his List A debut for Queensland against Tasmania in 2015. Following impressive performances in the domestic circuit, Stanlake was awarded apace in the Australia XI squad to play a tour match against New Zealand. 

Owing to recurring back injury issues, Stanlkate wasn’t part of the 2015-16 Sheffield Shield season. He was drafted back into the side following a match-winning performance for the Gold Coast in Grade Cricket. On his first-class debut, Stanlake bagged 4 wickets for 63 runs in the 2nd innings. He made his BBL debut for the Adelaide Strikers in 2015 and impressed with his bowling. Despite not taking a wicket, he conceded just 18 runs and earned praise from Andrew Flintoff who tipped him to increase his pace in the near future.  

Stanlake is currently a part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad outfit and has played just 6 IPL matches so far. One of his most notable contributions came with the bat when he smashed Ben Cutting for a boundary against the Mumbai Indians in the final ball of an IPL encounter in 2018 with 1 required. After impressing in the BBL, Stanlake was an automatic choice in the IPL Auctions. It was Royal Challengers Bangalore who bagged his services for just Rs 30 lakhs. 

He played just two matches and was subsequently bought by the Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2018. He started to make a statement with his skiddy nature and troubled quite a few batters in the limited opportunities. Just when things started looking good for Stanlake he was sidelined for the majority of the season after sustaining a finger injury. Given the combination of the foreign players in the SRH fold, it will be hard for Stanlake to break into the XI in the 2020 season.