SEAN Abbott unofficially became the youngest ever international cricketer this week after making his debut for Australia at the tender age of five.

We say unofficially because there is a slight technicality that makes Abbott younger than any other man or woman to play international cricket.

He was born in a leap year.

The New South Wales all-rounder picked up the wicket of veteran Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi in Abbott’s T20 international debut a few days ago and repeated the feat in the opening one-dayer in Sharjah, with Afridi caught on the boundary for five.

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media_camera Sean Abbott made three while batting at No.8 for Australia.

Abbott, who was born on February 29, 1992, has benefited from the absence of fellow all-rounders Mitch Marsh and Shane Watson and now looks set for a solid run in the one-day side.

Former Test opener Phil Jaques, who saw Abbott develop from promising youngster to genuine international cricketer at New South Wales, believes the five/22-year-old is “the real deal”.

“I think he’s got a really bright future,” Jaques told Fox Sports News.

“He’s been around the traps for a little while now.

“He was quite a raw performer when he first started but the last 12 to 18 months he’s had, he’s really put on a yard of pace and he just got a little bit smarter with his plans and the way he goes about things.

“I think he’s the real deal. He’s the bowling all-rounder that we need in that setup.”

If Abbott continues on the same trajectory he could well work his way into Australia’s World Cup squad.

‘Five-year-old wins World Cup’ has a nice ring to it.

*credit goes to statistician Ric Finlay for pointing out Abbott’s unique feat on Twitter

Originally published as Five-year-old debuts for Australia