Scott Styris plays his cricket in much the same way the guy who is 15 years older than the majority of a crowd of some suburban beer and pick up joint on a Saturday. He may not still be that good looking, fashionable or even know what the girls are into, but he knows how to be successful.
It isn’t pretty. He has to stay around really late, late for the drunk one whose friends have left and then needs to use every skill he has ever accumulated to get the girl. Even then he needs luck and the lights to be down low.
You also know that Styris gave up the love of a good and dependable wife to chase these vacuous young women around. He is chasing riches and young flesh, this takes time and preparation, it isn’t something you can do when you have a big commitment to something older that ties up your time for a large part of the year.
Watching Styris play against Zimbabwe was some sort of perverse thrill for me. I’ve always been a fan of watching these sorts of old men operate. Once Styris got his hands against the easy prey of the Zimbabwe middle and late order it was a gloriously sleazy encounter as Scott was all over them like a cheap polyester suit.You could smell the musky cologne and brylcreem on him. I never saw it, but I assume he had a gold tooth or a tooth pick in his mouth.
Stryis was dancing to Livin’ la Vida Loca, trapping girls in the corner of the bar and buying drinks like no one’s business.
Zimbabwe weren’t the first and regardless of his age they won’t be the last.
I’ve thought many times that Stryis’s career is over, but I’m always wrong. When you can continue to perform well beyond your use by date and you give up any real pride you can go on achieving moderate success for a long time.
All he needs now is a toupee.
