While there may be some observers asking if Aangan Parbhakar is too young to be playing a key role in Werribee’s bowling attack in sub-district first XI, he was familiar with life at the elite levels of club cricket long before arriving at Watton Street.
The 22-year-old up-and-coming fast bowler was a teenager playing A-grade matting in the afternoons and under-17s in the mornings at Caroline Springs when he was plucked away by Premier Cricket club Essendon for a trial.
Parbhakar impressed and spent the next four seasons with the Bombers, where he yo-yo’d between the thirds and fourths in his first three seasons before spending much of last season in the seconds.
Early last summer, he broke into the Bombers’ first XI, producing a respectable 1-25 over 15 overs against Melbourne University.
Things appeared to be looking up for Parbhakar, but a game later he was dropped to the seconds and a game after that he was sent to the thirds, remaining there for the rest of the summer.
Parbhakar played third XI finals last season but that was not exactly the reward he was seeking for the amount of work he put into his training and development.
Despite the flirtation with first XI cricket, Parbhakar concedes he was probably not ready to hold down a place in the team full-time – and that became part of the reason he ended up at Werribee and in the VSDCA this season.
The other part of the equation was his need to devote more time to his final year of university, where he is specialising in sports science.
The door back to Premier Cricket is ajar for Parbhakar, but he feels he needs to refine his game at Werribee before returning.
“Most definitely I have prospects to go back to Premier Cricket, whether it be the following year or in years to come,” he told Star Weekly.
“When I went from Caroline Springs to Premier Cricket, it was a major step so I didn’t fulfil those smaller steps and develop them.
“I feel like this year I will develop them and I could be ready to go back to Premier Cricket.”
The partnership between Parbhakar and Werribee is mutually beneficial.
Werribee gets a player who can have an impact from the get-go, one who can bolster a bowling attack that has not been as deep as it needed to be in past seasons.
Parbhakar gets a chance to further shape his game, learning from a long-time Footscray Edgewater opening bowler Brad Robertson, who is his new-ball partner and acting as a mentor.
“He’s helped with the technical things but mostly he’s told me to stay relaxed,” Parbhakar said. “I probably get impatient or frustrated during my bowling if things aren’t going my way. He’s always been good at telling me to stay calm.”
It is incredible to think that Parbhakar was a late starter when it came to junior cricket.
He began his career at the age of 15 with Caroline Springs, an expansion club that was fairly new itself to north-west metro cricket.
It is a credit to the junior set-up at Caroline Springs that Parbhakar was able to be identified so quickly and it’s something for which he is grateful.
“They keep close contact with me and I get down to their games and to their training whenever I get a chance,” he said.
When Parbhakar arrived at Werribee in the off-season, it was with a long term view of helping the club make the transition to Premier Cricket.
The door to Premier Cricket has since closed so if Parbhakar wants to return, it’s unlikely to be with the Tigers.
“I was hoping that Werribee would make the Premier scene in the next few years but that hasn’t gone through,” he said.
“I’m not really thinking too much ahead, Werribee’s a good club, we’re doing well and I’m happy.”
Parbhakar has made a solid start with Werribee, taking nine wickets at 20 in the first XI.
The early success of the side helped him settle into the line-up.
“Everyone has been pretty welcoming, so it’s been a pretty smooth move for me,” he said.
“It helps that we’re winning – we’re 3-1 at the moment and we’re looking good.”
