Advertisement

“The thinking man’s cricketer is a lazy cliche”

Ed Cowan loves to talk about life and cricket, but he despises the fact that his candour has seen him simplistically pigeon-holed.

Sep 02, 2016, updated Sep 02, 2016
Ed Cowan: tweets about Four Corners. Photo: AAP

Ed Cowan: tweets about Four Corners. Photo: AAP

He bristles at the notion that he is “the thinking man’s cricketer”.

But it’s not hard to see why the label, however objectionable to its subject, has stuck.

Cowan is best known for his short and somewhat turbulent stint as Australia’s opening batsman – a tenure that ended soon after Mickey Arthur was sacked as coach of the national team, to be replaced by Darren Lehmann.

But he has also been one of the country’s leading cricketers for many years; he’s also an author, commentator, business man, student and father, and has forged a public persona as a thoughtful, intelligent and articulate alternative to the cliche of the modern athlete, trained in how to studiously avoid expressing an opinion.

And that is something Cowan has never been shy in doing.

He says the “thinking man’s cricketer” moniker exists because journos are inherently lazy, and a public persona that includes publishing a tour diary and “tweeting about Four Corners” helps fashion an easy cliche that only scratches the surface.

In today’s Rooster Radio on InDaily, Cowan chats about media misrepresentation, and explains why former Test captain Ricky Ponting – a “tough bastard… but the loveliest human being you’ll ever meet” – was also a victim of it.

Cowan has lived in a world of high performance, which now helps him as the founder of Tripod Coffee. He’s prepared to have “tough conversations”, but he also recognises the need to reflect – something he says isn’t done enough in business.

Rooster Radio appears regularly in InDaily.

Local News Matters
Advertisement
Copyright © 2024 InDaily.
All rights reserved.