Homegrown leg-spinner Peter Hatzoglou made his debut at Lord’s Cricket Ground last Saturday in the sold-out stunner show that was Oval Invincibles vs London Spirit.
He stepped into the shoes of Trinidadian cricketer Sunil Narine who made an exit from The Hundred tournament for the Caribbean Premier League.
“The reason I came over to the UK this Australian winter, was to be around for an opportunity like this.”
“Now I’m overlooking the Thames from my hotel room, to see big ben and Westminster just outside the window… it’s amazing.” Peter told Neos Kosmos.
Oval Invincibles took the night and ran with it in both the women’s and men’s, coming out two for two at what’s fondly known by punters as the Home of Cricket.
All said and done Hatzoglou and the Invincibles took the match by six wickets with the new sign-on taking one of his own from fellow Aussie Ben McDermott, roaring and punching the air as the ball hit home.
Hatzoglou’s father Nick, couldn’t be prouder.
“It’s really exciting for our family, I tried to keep a lid on it to not brag, but I kept pinching myself, it’s Lord’s you know?”
“Ever since my parents migrated from Greece, sports were how our family integrated into the local society. As a young kid growing up in Sunshine, the Anglo-Australians at the local cricket club really took us in. When it came to our kids, we encouraged them to play, and cricket went without saying.”
The 23-year-old came into the professional scene in December 2020 when he joined the Melbourne Renegades lineup in the Big Bash League for the 2020-21 season.
Backing it up with a stint for the South Australian Redbacks, he returned to the BBL for the 2021-22 season signing a two-year deal with the Perth Scorchers in July ’21.
“Playing in the Big Bash and having won it last year, I guess that’s what made this a possibility. For it to eventuate, to be amongst some of the biggest names in cricket, it’s a dream come true” says Peter.
Cricket tragic and sports writer Nick Obst says a very promising season with the Renegades and again with the Scorchers suggests he’s got the potential for high level play.
“He fully deserved the selection on the back of his last two years, teams in The Hundred are very data focused, they almost never make a decision without strong reasoning behind it.” Says Obst.
Peter is now looking forward to a chance to play in the finals, with the Invincibles match-up against Manchester Originals at 6:30pm London time the final hurdle on the road to the top.
