‘Forever Grateful to Justin Langer’ - D’Arcy Short reflects on career lifeline
Justin Langer and D’Arcy Short
After making his List-A debut in December 2011, D’Arcy Short managed to play just 19 matches for Western Australia and 25 T20s over the next six years. His career seemed to have stalled. But everything changed with one phone call.
While on tour with the Australian Indigenous side, Short was overlooked for Western Australia selection.
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However, his performances caught the eye of Greg Shipperd, the former coach of Victoria, Delhi Daredevils, and Sydney Sixers. Shipperd phoned Justin Langer, who would go on to play a pivotal role in Short’s revival.
Langer met Short and advised him to lose weight and reset his mindset. Short followed his instructions diligently, improved his fitness, and soon reaped the rewards.
His career turned sharply upwards as he signed a three-year Big Bash deal with Hobart Hurricanes, earned an IPL contract with Rajasthan Royals, and broke into the Australian national team.
Reflecting on that turning point, Short recalled that moment with Cricfrenzy amid playing for Northern Territory in the ongoing Top End T20 series, “I’ll forever be grateful to Justin Langer because he gave me the opportunity to do a pre-season and play for Western Australia. If that meeting never happened, I probably wouldn’t have played for WA or even for Australia.”
“Around four months before the pre-season, I met him. He told me that if I wanted to play, I had to get fit. And yes, I did everything I could to get fit — and I got the results,” he added.
At 27, Short set the Big Bash League alight with a record-breaking season for Hobart Hurricanes—breaking Shaun Marsh’s record for most runs in a single season and setting the highest individual score at the time, highlighted by a century. His explosive rise was capped when he was bought for $775,000 in the IPL auction by Rajasthan Royals.
