After years of playing Premier Cricket in Perth and league cricket in the UK, one net session bowling to an Australian legend turned Andrew Tye's career around.

The forgotten man in Australia's failed World T20 campaign, Tye was by no means the youngest player in the squad at 29, but in terms of experience, the skilful right-armer was a novice.

While 12 squad members had tasted Test cricket, and the other two had played at one-day international level, Tye had only a pair of T20 internationals etched on his record when the World T20 group was named on February 9 in Auckland.

Tye was handed his T20I cap by Aussie great Ryan Harris // Getty Images

Not only was the he lacking in international experience, the right-armer had only been a professional cricketer for three years after toiling away in both hemispheres for almost a decade.

One of the initiatives introduced by new Perth Scorchers coach Justin Langer ahead of the 2012-13 KFC Big Bash League season was to explore the talents of the Perth grade scene by inviting a handful of players from each club to train with and against his T20 unit.

Tye was one of the players chosen from the Scarborough club, and jumped at the chance to bowl to the Scorchers batsmen, including champion Mike Hussey.

"Bowling to Mike Hussey was a dream come true, but I was also s**tting myself at the same time," Tye told cricket.com.au in Rajkot, where he is plying his trade for new Indian Premier League franchise Gujarat Lions.

Overcoming his nerves, Tye impressed the Scorchers and Langer, and was selected in a development squad which trained with the touring Australian team that summer where another notable performance followed.

"I bowled really well and George Bailey sat down with me after and asked if I was involved in any squads in WA," said Tye.

"As he was leaving he said 'I'll see you in Hobart on June 1st', implying he wanted me at Tasmania."

For the first time in four seasons Tye didn't travel to England in the winter, instead spending an entire pre-season with WA, where Langer described the paceman as "the most unfit cricketer he's ever seen".

A despondent Tye during the thrilling defeat to India in January // Getty Images

"I threw up at just about every running session," Tye said.

The faith was repaid by WA when Tye was selected in the Warriors 15-man one-day squad to begin the 2013-14 summer. It was another dream come true.

"Just before training, JL (Langer) pulls me into his office, sat me down and said 'AJ, you've been selected in the one-day squad.'

"I wanted to yell and jump around, but I kept myself calm and composed."

That session, left-arm paceman Joel Paris broke down with a season-ending quad injury and was not replaced in WA's squad for the 50-over tournament, leaving one less bowler Tye had to compete with for a starting spot.

It was a breakout season for the young quick who, in five one-day matches, claimed 13 wickets at 19.30 to be the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament behind New South Wales quick Sean Abbott.

"The day before the first game, I was putting some rubbish in the bin at the SCG, and JL told me 'AJ, you're in, get ready to play.'

"Played five games, took 13 wickets and haven't looked back."

But it could have been so different.

As an aspiring young fast bowler, a broken collarbone at 17 and the mandatory fast bowler's back injury a year later curtailed his early ambition, leaving Tye to play as an opening batsman in Scarborough's fourth grade side in Perth's Premier Cricket competition.

The next summer, 2005-06, a fully fit Tye was catapulted from fourths to firsts in half a season, but struggled to cement a spot in a strong Scarborough first XI, prompting him to try his luck in the UK in 2007, where he played for club side Chester-le-Street in England's north.

Upon returning home, Tye was diagnosed with osteitis pubis – an inflammation of the pelvic joint, commonly caused from overuse – and limped through the Perth summer before having the winter off where he recovered and steadily increased his running workloads through games of hockey, starting with five minutes in his first game until completing a full match seven weeks later.

To support his fledgling cricket career, Tye was a jack of all trades, paying the bills by working at a timber flooring company, landscaping and general maintenance.

He spent the next four winters, from 2009 to 2012, in the UK, where he finally made some progress up the ranks, playing second XI cricket for Somerset, Durham and one match for Northamptonshire against a rampant Michael Di Venuto who scored 156 off 80 balls in a 25-over per-side match. Tye finished with 1-54 off five overs.

But when he returned to Perth, the dream of playing cricket for a living was almost over.

"I came back in 2012 and had pretty much given up on being a professional cricketer," he said.

"I'd been playing A-grade cricket for almost six years by that stage and not once had I had an interest shown by the state board.

"I was just happy playing with my mates. Then JL took over."

Now Tye is one of the more sought-after T20 bowlers in the world.

Tye catches up with some fans during BBL|05 // Getty Images

After he completes his stint with Gujarat, Tye will head to Gloucestershire to play in England's domestic T20 competition, joining captain and WA teammate Michael Klinger.

And like most Australian cricketers, the ultimate goal is to don the Baggy Green and play Test cricket.

In seven first-class matches, Tye has taken 21 wickets at 33.80 in his the scarce opportunities he's been given as part of a powerful WA fast bowling battery.

Tye will be competing against the likes of Paris, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Nathan Rimmington, Simon Mackin, Jhye Richardson and David Moody for a spot in the starting XI when the Sheffield Shield season rolls around next summer, but he enjoys the challenge.

"It definitely makes the net sessions fiery," said Tye on the strength of WA's speed stocks.

"If all our bowlers are bowling at their best it's only going to make our batsmen better.

"It does breed good competition and good mateship.

"Yes, you're always fighting (for spots) but you're also learning.

"With the amount of talent coming through WA there's going to be limited opportunities, but four-day cricket is a hard game and you'll always have injuries.

"You've just go to make sure you're ready for that opportunity, because if you get that opportunity and you run with it it's had for the other blokes to get back into the team."

Consistency is the main area Tye will be working on when he again picks up a red ball, which could be for Gloucestershire if he elects to play second XI four-day cricket during his T20 stint in Bristol.

Tye with fellow WA paceman David Moody // Getty Images

But Tye knows what it takes to perform at first-class level, and is willing to put in the hard yards to get another crack at Shield cricket, and uses the profound success of a young teammate as inspiration.

"When I'm at my best I'm probably good enough, but when I'm at my worst I'm not good enough," he said.

"It's about getting that gap between my best and my worst a lot closer together and being able to have the consistency and the strength and the fitness to be able to bowl flat out for three days if needed in a four of five-day match.

"Everything is coming along nicely, but getting an opportunity is a wonderful thing.

"Look at Joel Paris – he got one opportunity and he's run with it, six matches for 35 wickets."

"It's pretty awesome when you look back at it that my T20 skills have got me to where I am today, but I still dream of being a first-class player in WA and a Test player for Australia."