Matt Parkinson enjoyed a whirlwind England Test debut last week when he was drafted in as a concussion replacement for Jack Leach during the first Test against New Zealand at Lord's.
It was an opportunity that was long overdue for the leg-spinner, who was first named in an England Test squad back in 2019. And Parkinson believes it was "fitting" he finally made his debut in a Test that was dedicated to the memory of Shane Warne, the greatest leg-spinner of all-time.
Warne tragically passed away in March at the age of just 52 after suffering a heart attack while on holiday in Thailand. The Australian legend was a much-loved member of Sky Sports' commentary team and, in the first Test played in England since his death, they renamed their commentary box at Lord's after him.
During the Test, play was briefly paused after 23 overs had been bowled with the entire ground standing to applaud Warne, who famously wore the number during his time as a player in honour of his childhood hero Aussie Rules star Dermott Brereton.
Warne was also a big fan of Parkinson and, when speaking to Mirror Sport last year ahead of The Hundred, called for the leg-spinner to be involved for England in the Ashes. "When you're a leg-spinner, the comparisons are always there so it's hard not to have him with you – so it was fitting I made my Test debut then," Parkinson told the i.
"I missed the Warne era slightly. I think I was slightly too young for the 2005 Ashes, I was eight or nine.
"I think it was more the back-end of his career and once he finished playing that I started watching YouTube clips and footage. I might have caught the [2006-07] Ashes when he retired.
"I think he started to have an impact on me more as I got older. It was really nice to have someone who was so good, such a big figure in the game speak nicely of me.
"The one shame was I never actually got to meet him. So that was a massive shame, but it was fitting to play this week."
