Alavi prepared to lead from the front

No stranger to leadership, Alavi will call on recent experience and success as he looks to inspire his side through his own performance.

“I’m a bit of a quiet person so I’ll try and lead from the front with bat, ball and in the field,” Alavi said of his captaincy style.

After skippering various state and national schoolboys sides, Alavi can confidently approach his role by simply allowing his cricket to do the talking.

He is a very intelligent cricketer and will no doubt enjoy the challenge of managing his bowlers and fields in the upcoming Championships, which will involve both one and two-day matches.

“Our bowling depth is really strong, we’ve got four spinners and a few (state) contracted players, Guy Walker and Matt Short,” Alavi said.

“I’ll have plans for the boys and it’s good to have plenty of options – it should be a great experience and it’s a great opportunity.”

A number of this year’s squad members played in last year’s unsuccessful under-19s campaign that saw Victoria finish sixth.

“It was a bit disappointing, there were some good individual performances but we just never really clicked with our performances as a team,” Alavi recalled.

The group has had some success, however, with Victoria winning the under-17s tournament two years ago.

“(In the under-17s’ win) there were no real stand outs – everyone just contributed at the right times,” Alavi said.

“I think that’s the most important thing.

“If everyone does their little bit to help the team move forward then we can hopefully succeed.

“A lot of the guys have the experience of winning back then, which should hopefully hold us in good stead for this year.”

Alavi also referred to the recent lead-up to this year’s Championships, stating that the strong camaraderie within the squad is likely to increase its chances of success.

Before Christmas, the team travelled to Anglesea for a training camp.

“It was really good to get all the boys together – we went surfing, mountain bike riding, went through a bit of team strategy, and just talked and got to know each other.

“A bit of team bonding before going away (to Adelaide) – I thought that was really handy for the boys.”

Further to this, the squad also got to train with the Melbourne Renegades prior to Christmas and most recently with the Melbourne Stars on Thursday of this week – all invaluable preparation.

Personally, Alavi has been lucky enough to train and play along side Australia’s best cricketers on numerous occasions.

He lived out any young player’s dream by bowling to the Australian Test side in the nets prior to the most recent Commonwealth Bank Boxing Day Test.

Here, he was given a fantastic opportunity to work directly with Australian spinner Nathan Lyon.

“Lyon did a little bit of work with me, he had a look and gave me his ideas – he loves helping out all the spinners,” Alavi said.

Alavi was nominated to attend the session by his Bartercard Premier Cricket Club, Fitzroy Doncaster, where he is currently playing in his fourth season with the First XI.

The team has had an up-and-down first half of the season and is currently 11th on the ladder.

Alavi has been in great form with the ball, taking 17 wickets prior to the Christmas break.

While his bowling is the strongest part of his game, he also considers himself a ‘bowling all-rounder’ – and justifiably so.

Alavi carries plenty of confidence with the bat into the upcoming tournament after compiling a patient 90 not out against South Australia in a Toyota Futures League match in November.

“I had plenty of time to bat and I just took the opportunity and it came off alright,” he said of the innings.

“I definitely need to do a job with the bat, as everyone has to these days.

“I love watching Michael Clarke and the way he plays spin.

“(Playing spin) is also one of the strongest parts of my game.

“I like Chris Rogers as well – the way he takes his time to build an innings.”

For his bowling, he pays close attention to the likes of Sri Lanka’s Rangana Herath and New Zealand’s Daniel Vettori – both left-arm orthodox spinners.

Alavi is as impressive and level-headed as they come, and the 19-year-old has the right attitude to follow in the footsteps of these cricketing superstars.

“Obviously the end goal is to play for Australia – that’s what I think every young cricketer dreams about, but there’s still a lot of work to do before then.

“I just want to try and get more Futures League games, keep performing well and maybe one day get a state contract.

“I’ve got to be thankful – I’ve had some great opportunities so I’ve just got to utilise them as much as possible.”

“But first, we’ll hopefully bring back the win for the state!”

Victoria’s under-19s play their first match of the Championships on Monday against the Northern Territory.

Furthermore, in selection news, St Kilda paceman Shea Gribben has come into the squad for the injured Kieran Elliott, and Dandenong’s Tanner Stanton has been added to cover Matt Short and his commitments to the Melbourne Renegades.