It was concerns over phishing online, rather than fishing outside off stump, that nearly scuppered Caleb Falconer’s hopes of a contract in The Hundred.
At the time the Middlesex batting all-rounder did not have an agent, had not yet made a professional appearance and was thousands of miles from home, away with England at the Under-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe and Namibia.
But the teenager had a hunch he should pick up the phone to his father.
“I actually gave him a call and said, ‘It might be worth chucking my name in’ for The Hundred auction,” Falconer told BBC Sport.
His father Stuart – a coach, a major influence on his son’s career and, for one day only, became his unofficial player representative.
There was just one hitch. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was not quite convinced he really was Falconer’s father.
“They had to get back to him to find out if he actually was my dad and it wasn’t just a hoax email,” Falconer laughed.
“It was a bit of a process and it took him a few hours to sort it. I’ve no idea what my dad wrote!”
A few phone calls, emails and a presumably an identity check later, Falconer senior had managed to get Caleb on to the auction list.
It turned out to be quite an important email, not least for his son’s bank balance.
Several months later, his name was being fought over by two Hundred franchises, with Southern Brave eventually winning the bidding at £55,000.
“My mindset was that even being in the auction was a really cool achievement,” Falconer said.
“To get picked up, and also getting a bit of a bidding war, that was unbelievable.”
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