Justin Langer facts for kids
Langer in 2007
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name |
Justin Lee Langer
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| Born | 21 November 1970 Perth, Western Australia |
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| Nickname | JL, Alfie | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Left-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm medium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Opening batsman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side |
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| Test debut (cap 354) | 23 January 1993 v West Indies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 5 January 2007 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut (cap 117) | 14 April 1994 v Sri Lanka | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 25 May 1997 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1991/92–2007/08 | Western Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2000 | Middlesex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2006–2009 | Somerset | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2009 | Rajasthan Royals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Head coaching information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2018 | Western Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012–2018 | Perth Scorchers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2022 | Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023– | Lucknow Super Giants | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Source: ESPNcricinfo, 28 September 2009
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Justin Lee Langer (born 21 November 1970) is a famous Australian cricket coach and former player. He was the coach of the Australian men's national team from 2018 to 2022. In July 2023, he became the coach for the Lucknow Super Giants team in the IPL.
Langer was a left-handed batsman. He is best known for his amazing partnership with Matthew Hayden. They were Australia's opening batsmen in Test matches during the early and mid-2000s. Many people think they were one of the most successful opening pairs ever.
Justin Langer played for Western Australia in Australia. He also played English county cricket for Middlesex and Somerset. He holds the record for the most runs scored by an Australian in first-class cricket. As Australia's coach, he led the team to win the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Contents
Early Life and Career
Justin Langer was born in Perth, Western Australia. He was very good at cricket from a young age. He played for Western Australia's youth teams. He also played for the Australian under-19 team.
In 1990, he won a scholarship to the Australian Cricket Academy. This helped him improve his skills.
Starting in First-Class Cricket
Langer started his professional career in 1991–92. He played for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield. He played well, which led to his first Test match for Australia.
He made his Test debut in January 1993. He was 22 years old. This was during the West Indies' tour of Australia.
International Playing Career
Justin Langer's international career lasted from 1993 to 2007. He became a key player for Australia.
Early Test Matches (1993–2000)
Langer's first Test match was against the West Indies in January 1993. It was a tough start. He was even hit on the head by a fast ball from Ian Bishop.
In his second innings, he scored 54 runs. This was the highest score for Australia in that innings. He stayed in the team for a while but struggled to score big runs. He was dropped from the team and only played a few times until 1998.
In October 1998, he returned for Australia's tour of Pakistan. He scored his first Test century there. A century means scoring 100 runs or more in one innings.
In November 1999, he played a match-winning innings in Hobart. He scored 127 runs. He and Adam Gilchrist made a huge partnership of 238 runs. This helped Australia win against Pakistan.
Becoming an Opening Batsman (2001–2007)
Langer used to bat at number three in the order. In 2001, he was dropped from the team. But he came back as an opening batsman. He replaced Michael Slater for the last Test of the 2001 Ashes series.
He scored a century in that match. This helped him secure his spot as an opener. He then scored two more centuries in a row. As an opening batsman, he averaged 52.38 runs. He scored 14 centuries in 44 matches in this role.
His partnership with Matthew Hayden became very successful. In the 2002–03 Ashes series, Langer scored his highest Test score. He made 250 runs against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
The partnership between Hayden and Langer was very strong. They scored 5,655 runs together in 113 innings. This is one of the highest ever for an opening pair in Test cricket. Only Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes from the West Indies scored more.
Langer faced some injuries later in his career. He had a concussion during a tour of South Africa in 2005–06. Despite this, he continued to play.
Retirement from International Cricket
On 1 January 2007, Justin Langer announced he was retiring from Test cricket. This was after the fifth Ashes Test against England. He retired at the same time as other Australian legends like Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath.
He said he knew it was the right time to retire. He had decided during the previous match in Melbourne. He wanted to help Australia win back the Ashes.
Domestic Playing Career
Even after retiring from international cricket, Langer continued to play. He played for his state team, Western Australia, and for English county teams.
Playing for Western Australia
Langer was the captain of the Western Warriors (Western Australia's team). He played for them until the end of the 2006/2007 season.
On 5 December 2007, he broke a record. He became the highest run-scorer for Western Australia in four-day matches. He passed Tom Moody's old record of 8853 runs. He retired from Australian domestic cricket in March 2008. He had played for Western Australia for 17 years.
Playing County Cricket in England
Langer played for Middlesex County Cricket Club from 1998 to 2000. He was even captain in 2000. In his first season, he scored 233 runs not out against Somerset. He scored 1,000 runs in just eight matches that season.
In June 2006, he joined Somerset. On 20 July 2006, he made his highest first-class score. He scored 342 runs for Somerset against Surrey. This was the highest score ever by a Somerset batsman. It broke the record of Sir Viv Richards.
Langer stayed with Somerset as captain for the 2008 season. He scored many runs for them. In 2007, he scored 1215 runs in 15 first-class matches.
On 23 July 2009, he passed Sir Donald Bradman's record. He became the leading Australian first-class run scorer. He scored his 86th century in first-class cricket. At the end of the 2009 season, Langer retired from all competitive cricket.
Post-Playing Career
After retiring as a player, Justin Langer moved into coaching.
Coaching Roles
In November 2009, Cricket Australia appointed Langer as an assistant coach. He worked as a batting coach and mentor for the Test team.
In November 2012, he became the head coach of Western Australia. He also coached the Perth Scorchers team.
In 2016, Langer was an interim coach for the Australian team. This was when the main coach, Darren Lehmann, was on leave.
Coaching the National Team
On 3 May 2018, Langer was announced as the coach of the Australia national cricket team. This happened after a ball tampering scandal led to the previous coach's resignation. His four-year term began on 22 May 2018.
He coached Australia to the semi-finals of the 2019 Cricket World Cup. In 2021, he led the team to win the T20 World Cup.
On 4 February 2022, Langer announced he was resigning as head coach. His contract was ending soon, and he decided not to take a short-term extension.
In July 2023, he became the head coach of the Lucknow Super Giants team.
Famous Partnerships
Justin Langer had some memorable moments and partnerships during his career.
Partnership with Matthew Hayden
His most famous opening batting partner was Matthew Hayden. They played together in over 100 Test innings for Australia. They scored 5654 runs together. Their average partnership was 51 runs. This makes them one of the most successful opening pairs in Test cricket history.
A Tough Moment
In his 100th Test match, Langer was hit on the head by a fast ball. This happened during a match against South Africa in 2006. He got a concussion and went to the hospital. Even though it was risky, Langer was ready to bat again if his team needed him. His captain, Ricky Ponting, said he would have stopped the game to protect Langer. Luckily, Brett Lee scored the winning runs before Langer had to bat again.
Personal Life
Justin Langer went to Newman College and Aquinas College in Perth. There is even a cricket shield named after him, played between these two schools.
His uncle, Rob Langer, was also a left-handed batsman for Western Australia. Justin is married to his high school sweetheart, Sue. They have four daughters.
He is also a martial artist. He has a black belt in Zen Do Kai.
Langer has written five books about his life and cricket. These include From Outback to Outfield, The Power of Passion, and Keeping My Head: A Life in Cricket.
A Melbourne rock band, Telemachus Brown, even wrote a song about him called (Wrong about) Justin Langer.
Langer is a devout Catholic. He is also known to be conservative in his political views.
Images for kids
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Langer after the 2nd Test vs England, 5 December 2006
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Langer as captain at Somerset, 27 June 2007
See also
In Spanish: Justin Langer para niños
