AUS vs ENG: The Ashes 2025-26 has exploded into life in Perth, and Australia couldn’t have asked for a better start. Mitchell Starc ripped through England’s top order with a blazing 3-wicket burst, bringing up a major milestone of 100 Ashes wickets and setting the tone for the series. But while Starc grabbed the early headlines, another storyline is quietly taking shape – the arrival of debutant Brendan “Ben” Doggett.
Who is Benn Doggett?
Doggett’s journey to Test cricket is anything but conventional. Long before he wore the Baggy Green, he was a carpenter in Toowoomba, building houses and living a life far removed from the elite cricket circuit. But talent has a way of finding the right path, and Doggett soon swapped tools for a cricket ball and hasn’t looked back since.
A proud Indigenous Australian, Doggett was named the Lord’s Taverners Indigenous Cricketer of the Year in 2016. He worked his way up through Queensland’s ranks, first as a rookie and then on the senior list, making an immediate impact in the Sheffield Shield. His debut came in 2017, and he helped Queensland reach the final that same season. A year later, he was part of the historic Aboriginal XI tour of the UK, marking 150 years since the original team made that journey.
His domestic record is full of big moments: a five-wicket haul in the 2017-18 Shield final, crucial wickets in the 2020-21 title win, and an 11-wicket performance in the 2024-25 final that earned him Player of the Match. His willingness to move to South Australia to work under Jason Gillespie and playing for three different BBL teams showed his hunger to grow.
Doggett has been on the fringes of the Test setup before, touring the UAE in 2018 and being called up last year as Hazlewood’s cover, but he never got that final nod until now. With Hazlewood sidelined by a hamstring strain, Doggett was thrust straight into the Ashes cauldron, becoming part of a historic moment. Alongside Scott Boland, this is the first time Australia have fielded two Indigenous men in a Test match.
And he hasn’t looked overwhelmed for a second. In his opening spell today, Doggett hit the right areas, beat the bat several times, and showed exactly why selectors rate him so highly.
Australia’s fast-bowling depth has been talked about for years, but Doggett’s long-awaited debut adds a fresh, meaningful chapter. From building houses in Toowoomba to debuting in the Ashes, it’s been a remarkable rise, and it’s only just getting started.
