Who is Ashton Agar?

Ten weeks ago, Ashton Agar was looking forward to spending the English summer as an Australian Institute of Sports scholar. Then life changed for him on July 10. A surprise call-up to play the first Ashes Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham sent cricket fans hunting for his profile on the internet. (Ashton Agar - a photo feature)

On Thursday, the unheralded 19-year-old broke the record books as Australia staged a remarkable comeback after James Anderson led the English attack to reduce Australia to 117 for nine wickets in 34 overs. (Read: Agar and Hughes stun England)

Agar made the Australian XI as a specialist left-arm spinner but his achievements as a No. 11 batsman left everyone dumbfounded. Agar scored the second fastest fifty on Test debut by an Australian batsman (50 balls) -- Adam Gilchrist holds the record (46 balls) - and his 10th wicket century partnership with Phil Hughes lifted the Aussies from a massive hole.

Agar helped Australia take a 65-run first innings lead, which at one stage looked impossible. He was out for 98, pulling a Stuart Broad delivery to Graeme Swann, who took a low catch at mid-wicket. Agar thus became the highest scorer in Test cricket as a No. 11 batsman. He erased West Indian Tino Best's record of 95 scored against England last year. Interestingly, India's Zaheer Khan is the third best with a 75.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the left-arm finger spinner had put on hold plans to study law at Victoria's Deakin University to further his cricketing dreams. Agar lives in Melbourne but had to travel interstate to get play first-class cricket.

After playing as Australia's second spinner in the under-19 team, Agar debuted in the Sheffield Shield for Western Australia in January this year. He has taken 31 wickets in 10 first-class matches at an average of 29.38.

He's unusually tall for a spinner at 6 foot 4, and has proved handy with the bat too, with an average of 33.6 and 336 runs to his name. This form has brought him to the notice of selectors and in a short space of time.

Just over a month after his Shield debut, he was called into the Australian squad to tour India in March. But his only outing was against India's 'A' team. He returned figures of 3/107. After returning home, Agar bagged his career-best figures: 5 for 65 against South Australia in a Sheffield Shield match in March.

It is interesting to note that he has a Sri Lankan background. Agar is the grandson of Nala Hewawissa, who played cricket for Dharmarajah College, Kandy. Sheilagh Hewawissa, Agar's grandmother, worked for the Ceylon Tea Board. Agar's father, John, has played club cricket in Melbourne.