Jimmy Maher

Personal information
Full name	James Patrick Maher
Born	(1974-02-27) 27 February 1974 (age 49) Innisfail, Queensland, Australia
Nickname	Mahbo
Height	182 cm (6 ft 0 in)
Batting	Left-handed
Bowling	Right-arm medium
Role	Batsman
International information
National side	Australia (1998–2003)
ODI debut (cap 137)	14 January 1998 v New Zealand
Last ODI	9 November 2003 v New Zealand
ODI shirt no.	46
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1993/94–2007/08	Queensland
2001	Glamorgan
2003	Glamorgan
2005–2006	Durham
2007	Glamorgan
2008	Hyderabad Heroes
Career statistics
Competition ODI FC LA T20 Matches 26 206 214 18 Runs scored 438 13,149 7,439 366 Batting average 25.76 38.78 39.15 26.14 100s/50s 0/1 27/61 16/36 0/3 Top score 95 223 187 59 Balls bowled – 852 165 – Wickets – 10 6 – Bowling average – 50.40 28.00 – 5 wickets in innings – 0 0 – 10 wickets in match – 0 0 – Best bowling – 3/11 3/29 – Catches/stumpings 18/– 210/3 104/1 4/–
Source: CricketArchive, 7 August 2017

James Patrick Maher (born 27 February 1974) is an Australian former cricketer, who played One Day Internationals. He is "an attractive left-handed batsman with a clumping cover-drive".^[1]

Maher competed in the Gladiator Team Sports Challenge in 1995.

Domestic career

The following two seasons were a prolific pair for Maher playing for Queensland, a time which included a period at Glamorgan. In 2001–02, he became the first batsman to reach 1000 runs in the Pura Cup.

On 25 February 2007, Maher was named Man of the Match in the Ford Rangers Cup Final against the Victorian Bushrangers after making 108 from 133 balls. The Queensland Bulls went on to win the match by 21 runs.^[2] It was the third time that he had scored a century for Queensland in a One Day domestic final.

He retired from all types of cricket at the end of the Australian 2007–08 domestic season. Soon afterwards, he joined the Zee Telefilms' rebel Indian Cricket League, playing for the Hyderabad Heroes as an opening batsman.

Having spent two season at Durham Maher played for Glamorgan in 2007 after supporters funded the signing.^[3]

International career

He was first selected to play for Australia in two one-day matches in 1997–98, due to illness and injury respectively to Mark Waugh and Steve Waugh.

He came back into the international fold in 2002, after the Waugh brothers were sacked following an ODI season in which Australia failed to make the finals of the triangular ODI series. He responded with a steady innings of 95 against South Africa. He was included in the Australian ODI squad as a spare batsman and as a fill-in wicketkeeper for the next few seasons, including the 2003 Cricket World Cup.

Controversy

On 11 February 2007 Maher was criticised by South Australian cricket captain Darren Lehmann for not declaring to make a game of their Pura Cup match at the Gabba. Lehmann said he thought he was playing Tasmania referring to Tasmania's reliance on final day run chases.^[4]

Maher caused controversy in 1995 following Queensland's Sheffield Shield win over South Australia, when he said during a television interview "I'm as full as a coon's Valiant". Indigenous Australians criticised Maher for his statement and its racial undertone. Maher later publicly apologised over the statement.^[5]