Ex-CSK batsman Matthew Hayden chosen by Australia to improve business ties with India

In an effort to improve business ties with India, the Australian government has appointed former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden and Indian-origin politician Lisa Singh to the India-Australia Council. The development was disclosed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Marise Payne as she announced the new appointments to the board of the Australia-India Council. The latest appointment comes on the back of Matthew Hayden’s continued engagement in strengthening Australia-India ties since 2018.

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Former CSK batsman Matthew Hayden to help improve India-Australia ties

While Ashok Jacob has been reappointed as the chair of the council, three other members, including Matthew Hayden have been added to it. The list includes Lisa Singh, Ted Baillieu and former cricketer Matthew Hayden. The Australia-India Council will play an important role in driving forward India’s foreign policy and economic interests with India. This will be supported by the implementation of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and India Economic Strategy.

While Lisa Singh, the former Labor Party Senator from Tasmania will be the Deputy Chair of the council, former Victoria Premier Ted Ballieu and Matthew Hayden will be its new members.

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Matthew Hayden is not the first Australian cricketer to have taken up an administrative position aimed at improving India-Australia ties outside cricket. In 2015, former Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist was appointed as the first Australia-India Education Ambassador to India. The wicketkeeper batsman’s role as Education Ambassador involved many visits to India, where the cricketer's talks aimed at strengthening the bilateral education relationship between the two countries, while also talking about how Australia is a high-quality provider of education.     

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Matthew Hayden career roundup

During his career, Matthew Hayden played over a 100 Tests for Australia, scoring 30 centuries. In limited-overs cricket, the opening batsman featured in 161 ODIs and 9 T20Is for his country. The batsman also played in the IPL during its early years, as he was part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team led by MS Dhoni. Recently, Matthew Hayden shared a hilarious incident involving him and MS Dhoni.

Speaking to CSK’s Instagram page, Matthew Hayden had talked about how MS Dhoni had tried to convince him to not use his famous 'Mongoose bat'. Notably, Matthew Hayden’s unique mongoose bat had attracted a lot of attention during the IPL 2010. During the tournament, Matthew Hayden had decided to use the bat with a longer handle and a short blade, as he believed it improved his game.

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Image Courtesy: Matthew Hayden Instagram