After a summer that involved an Illawarra Cricket first grade debut, a maiden second grade century and an under 16 grand final berth, Jayden Zahra-Smith was due for a well-earned break.
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But a break is the last thing on the 15-year-old’s mind.
Zahra-Smith was recently selected in the ACT/NSW Country Under 17s squad and will spend the winter attending training camps before the group is narrowed down in September.
Given he is a year younger than most of the squad members, it’s a selection that came as a surprise for the Dapto cricketer.
“It was a pretty proud moment to be selected in the squad,” Zahra-Smith said. “It was a bit of a surprise because I’m a year younger, but it will be really good to train with blokes that are a year older than me.”
While the selection may have come as a surprise to Jayden, his father David Smith believes it’s a fair reward for the hard work the batting all-rounder puts into his game.
On top of usual training commitments, the pair spend three to four nights a week at the nets working on Zahra-Smith’s batting.
“If he put half his cricket work ethic into his school work, I’d be a very happy father,” Smith said. “He loves all his sport, but he eats and breathes cricket.”
Zahra-Smith opens the batting for the Dapto Under 16s, where he plays with an attacking, aggressive mindset in a bid to lay the foundation for his team’s innings. It’s a mantra that saw him score over 500 runs for the side last season.
“I just love going out to score runs and playing with my teammates,” Zahra-Smith said.
“I like to open and take on the responsibility to set up the innings for the team.”
After serving his apprenticeship in second grade last season, Zahra-Smith will look to become a permanent fixture in the Canaries first grade team. The key, he believes, is working on the mental side of his game.
“The biggest difference playing with adults is the mental game. It’s important not to get into your head, trying not to go for the big shots and staying patient.”