There are more examples like Nick Maddinson's surprise return to the Test team

Delhi: Even though luck saved Australia from the loss of selecting Nick Maddinson in the Test team against South Africa in Durban, it is true that including Nick Maddinson in the Australian Test team after almost 10 years is a decision which will be discussed for years. The interesting thing is that he had not even played first-class cricket for about one and a half years, that is, it is not that after seeing his recent form, he was called in the Test team.

The result was that Maddinson's contribution to Australia's 214-run victory in the Test was 0 off 33 balls in the first innings. This 0 was also such that he kept struggling in 33 balls and experts said, this was a pity situation. In the second innings, Maddinson saved the selectors from some criticism by scoring 48 runs in 38 balls.

Also read: SA vs AUS: Nathan Lyon stopped South Africa at number 10 and turned the test from there

It is true that his testicular cancer was largely responsible for his not playing first-class cricket with the red ball and even after chemotherapy, the doctors declared him out of danger of cancer in October 2025, yet the courage shown by the selectors in taking him back into the Test team is amazing. Not only this, he also came in the playing eleven.

Nic Maddinson found a lump in his body earlier last year. Scans revealed testicular cancer, and he had surgery immediately to remove it. But further tests seven weeks later showed the cancer had spread to parts of his abdominal lymph nodes and lung. Maddinson's wife, Bianca, was also pregnant with their second child when he began chemotherapy and had to quit her job as a dentist to look after their toddler son while Maddinson underwent treatment. He would be at the hospital from about 11am to 4pm. Then a sleep. Then he would force himself to have dinner. Then he would sleep until about 1am, but sometimes he would stay awake until 6am. He completed his chemotherapy on July 14. He had to wait another two months before he was cleared to resume full training. After the birth of his second son, Wilder, he is grateful to be healthy again and has urged others to get checked if they notice anything abnormal. Today, Nic Maddinson plays Test cricket again. He returns to first-class cricket after 579 days, having last played in March 2025. It is the longest period an Australian has gone without playing first-class cricket before a men's Test match. Never give up.

— Cricinfo (@cricinfo) October 9, 2026

Maddinson's return to the Test team after many years and his disastrous failure (reflected in his 0 in 33 balls), however, is not the first such incident that has been discussed in cricket. In such cases, selectors hope for a great story, relying on the player's past reputation but what can one do if the player looks helpless?

Let's learn about 5 more such famous examples:

1. Dinesh Karthik (India)

After playing a Test against Bangladesh in January 2010, almost 8 years before making a comeback in June 2018. The interesting thing is that he was shining in the T20 format but as soon as Wriddhiman Saha got injured in the Test team, he was called. Played first against Afghanistan and then on the high-profile 2018 tour of England.

The swing-friendly pitches exposed his technical shortcomings and he appeared in the list of 'Golden Ducks' at Lord's after scores of 0, 20, 1. His helplessness was such that he was dropped in the middle of the series and young Rishabh Pant was included in the team. He never played Test cricket after scoring 25 runs in 5 innings.

2. Gareth Batty (England)

Made a comeback in 2016 after a wait of 11 years and 142 days and played for the first time since playing against Bangladesh in June 2005. He was 39 years old then and while his passion was admirable, his bowling at the highest level was lacking the same edge as before. In the two Test matches in Bangladesh and India, he kept struggling for wickets and his bowling average was more than 50. England gave up after this.

3. Parthiv Patel (India)

He played against Sri Lanka in August 2008 and made his comeback against England in November 2016. He was called back to the team when Saha was injured. After his return, he batted well in the initial matches, but failed miserably on the South Africa tour in 2018. Even the wicketkeeping fell apart, he dropped many catches, gave a lot of byes and struggled with the short ball while batting. After this we had to go out.

4. Mohammad Ashraful (Bangladesh)

When he was called to play against Sri Lanka after two years of poor form in domestic cricket and being dropped from the team, the 2013 Sri Lanka tour proved to be a scam for this 'golden boy' of Bangladesh cricket. Except for one innings in which he scored 190, he failed miserably but the real trouble came right after the series when he became famous for match-fixing and spot-fixing in the Bangladesh Premier League. He received many types of punishments and this return became a matter of great infamy.

Also read: Sanju Samson hits fifty in 20 balls, becomes the sixth Indian to score a century of sixes in T20I

5. Darren Bravo (West Indies)

Made a comeback in 2019 after being out of the team for almost 2 years and 3 months. After playing against Pakistan in November 2016, he returned to the team against England in January 2019. Actually, he was dropped from the team after a clash with the West Indies management but by the time he was called back, his confidence was completely gone.

In the comeback series, he scored 50 off 216 balls in an innings but was able to score only one count in 7 innings. After his return, he was out several times without opening the account in his next 10 Test innings, averaging a very poor 11.3.