During the late 1980s and '90s there was no fast bowler mimicked more in the backyard than today's guest on Lessons Learnt with the Greats, Merv Hughes. Merv was part of the trailblazing group under Allan Border that led Australia out of the doldrums to the top of the world. His aggression, attitude and serious skill led Merv to take 212 Test wickets for his country along with hundreds more for his beloved Victoria. In this episode, Merv talks about his beginnings, the advice that has stuck with him to this day and how he became one of Australia's most successful and revered fast bowlers. I hope you enjoy it.

Episode rundown:

01:22 - Merv had a brilliant international career and we start by chatting about a couple of his highlights, from taking on the mighty Windies to the historic '89 Ashes series in England

07:25 - We then dig into the technical side of fast bowling and what worked for Merv

10:02 - Next Merv talks about the mental side of the game and how he developed his mental skills

14:37 - We move back to the technical side to discuss what Merv focused on during play

19:29 - Merv played a lot of high-level cricket and to do that he had to stay as fit as possible. While he admits he carried a bit of extra weight, Merv explains how he became the hardest trainer in any team he represented

25:02 - Here Merv talks about the best version of himself and goes on to talk about how aspiring players are being over-coached at a young age

39:50 - Merv has been on both sides of the media and here he shares his experiences of how times have changed

47:09 - We next move off the field to how Merv has invested and handled his finances

58:53 - Merv shares the mantras he lives by

1:04:32 - We finish with the inspiring people Merv has met and the books that have had an impact on him

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