Waugh Vs. Waugh

For twin brothers both Steve and Mark Waugh are completely different personalities. Not only are they different but they are not even close to each other as twin brothers should be. They don't even look like each other for twin brothers. Their contrasting dispositions and playing styles is rather surprising as both the brothers were raised in similar backgrounds.

The Early Years:

The Waugh twins Stephen and Mark were raised in Bankstown, a lower middle class suburb of Sydney. And sports was very much a part of their lives as their mother Beverly Waugh was the South Australian under 14 women's singles tennis champion and their father Rodger Waugh was a huge Tennis fan and he often hit balls with Aussie tennis legends like Tony Roche.

Beverly Waugh had to give up tennis as she got married at the age of 18 and a year later she gave birth to twins Stephen and Mark. They were born on June 2nd 1965 and Steve was 4 minutes elder to Mark. Their mother Beverly mothered two more boys Dean and Daniel before their parents separated amicably. But all the four kids lived with their mother. The Waugh twins grew up on the banks of the Georges river and went to the East Hill Boys School in Panania. Incidentally the school have named their cricket nets after Stephen Waugh after Steve led Australia to an incredible World Cup win. And they still live on the banks of the Georges river and identical twins as they are they have also built identical homes for themselves. Their homes have been hidden by bushes so that they can have their privacy.

The Waugh bros were brought up in a hard way as their mother was the only earning member in their family. And it was not at all for easy for their mother Beverly Waugh as she had taken a loan for their house and had to repay it. She used to find it extremely difficult to meet their expenses and especially meet the expenses to buy all the cricket gear that the Waugh Twins needed. But she knew that the kids had some rare cricketing talent in them and she knew that even if they don't play for Australia they would surely play for their state New South Wales and it was with that confidence that she started approaching sponsors and sports shops for sponsorships and price concessions. But each time she was told to show her face again only if the twins get into the state team.

The Twins finally found some work as umpires for indoor cricket tournaments thanks to a close family friend. Steve and Mark would spend long hours stretching upto almost mid night in near freezing temperatures umpiring indoor tournaments. Both Steve and Mark were good students though Mark was slightly better at lessons than Steve was. He was also a more organized kid than Steve was. They were also good at sports and apart from cricket, they could have also been tennis and soccer professionals as they were both extremely good at the two sports.

Contrast in characteristics even in their early years:

The difference in characteristics and behavior of the two brothers were evident even when they were growing up. According to their mother who was a working woman it used to get pretty difficult to manage work and raise the four kids at the same time. So the best dressed of the four brothers would always be the one who was up from bed the earliest and Mark was the one who always rose first. Stephen Waugh was the eldest of the brothers but he was also the shortest and often he used chewing gum to stick up his folded pants.

Mark Waugh was very particular about the way he dressed but Steve was pretty casual. Quite in contrast to their cricketing styles today where Mark appears so casual about everything he does and Steve so serious. A close study of the Waugh brothers today would suggest that Steve would be the guy who is more quiet and reserved and Mark would be most likely to play a prank and pull a fast one on his mates. But it wasn't to be at least not in their early years. It was Stephen who was more mischievous and he didn't need an invitation for any mischief whereas Mark would always be the one who would followed suit.

But just because Mark always possessed a more mischievous face he would always appear more guilty than Steve. Steve also used to have more fun as a kid while Mark preferred to be quiet and he used to get scared often by little things like a street dog or a ride on the merry go round. There is this famous story told by his mother in numerous magazines about how at an amusement park a 6 year old Mark had climbed up a cliff and stood petrified not knowing what to do next.

The difference is evident even today burt the roles are reversed:

Although Mark appears to be more open, flamboyant and uninhibited both in his cricket and in his persona while Steve appears more reserved, conservative and stuck up, it is not the case. Steve is just more focused and gets a kick out of leading Australia or helping kids at Udayan. On the other hand Mark is more flamboyant both in his cricket and also the way he goes about his lifestyle. Although Steve has got involved in social work Mark prefers to spend his free time by going to the races. He loves horses and possesses a huge gambler's instinct. He owns quite a few horses along with Ricky Ponting down in Australia and both of them are regulars at the races. Perhaps that is the reason why he got involved in the whole bookie incident in Sri Lanka in 1994.

Difference in batting styles:

The way Cricket's most celebrated twins approach the game is completely different. Steve Waugh is a nudger and a pusher, a batsman who will protect his wicket with his life. He hardly will play an extravagant stroke and is the man for the crisis. Mark on the other hand loves to take chances. He is an artist and if he does not find a challenge in the bowling or find the situation challenging then he will play a loose shot and get out. He is extremely unpredictable, he will get out all of a sudden just when he has the bowlers at his mercy. But he is an entertainer. His game is appreciated not because of the amount of runs he gets but the way he gets them. He does not bother a lot about records, whereas Steve does. Steve loves a challenge and is not scared to have a word or two with the opposition where as Mark is casual, prefers to be on his own self, if he is batting or even when he is standing at second slip, a position which he owns by right.

Steve cares about his performance and does not mind showing it. Every Cricket lover knows that even Mark is as serious about his performances but he just does not show it. That is the reason why he is such a misunderstood cricketer. Steve is superstitious and tense, chewing gum all the time. He also keeps a red hanky as a good luck charm. Mark on the other hand just wears his cricket gear.

Although the Waugh bothers are both phlegmatic in character, Steve normally shows a lot more emotion on the field than Mark. One would see Steve Waugh throwing the ball high up in the air after taking a catch and embracing thre bowler if he takes an important wicket, but Mark would just go to the bowler or the gathering of players and pat the bowler on his back side and shake hands.

Steve also claims that he gets premonitions about his brother Mark's dismissals (obviously it is something that Mark is not too happy about). Steve claims that he got it a ball before Mark was bowled by Phil Tufnell for 99 in the 1993 Lord's Test. , a ball before he was caught off Ambrose in the Bridgetown Test in 1995. Quite amazingly when Steve was in the United States, he had a nightmare that his brother would be dismissed for a pair of ducks against Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test and he did! Not only that he bagged another pair in the following test. When asked about Steve's premonitions Mark Jokingly said, " Now Why would'nt Stephen dream of me scoring a double century every now and then ?". No wonder the two brothers do not even look at each other when they are batting they will always look over the other's right shoulder.

Steve always wears his dark glasses on the ground but he never wears them he always has them behind his cap, whereas Mark always has his glasses on and he has them on even when he bowls.

Steve Waugh has taken it upon himself to coach Glen McGrath and improve his batting whereas Mark Waugh is quite positive about the fact that he is the worst tail ender the World of Cricket has ever seen. In fact he has even laid a bet on the fact that McGrath will never ever get a test fifty.

Steve is nick named "Tugga" for the tough manner in which he plays his cricket, where as Mark is called Junior because he is younger to Stephen by 4 minutes. He is also called "hollywood" by Shane Warne for his flamboyant and good looks.

Steve Waugh found a life partner quite early on in his life and married her but Mark has always been shy of girls and it is only recently that he got engaged to his girl friend.

Both Steve and Mark have a mysterious gap in their spinal vertebrae which accounts for their back spasms and stress fractures. Whether they were born with this defect or whether this was caused by their constant bowling in their developing years is unclear. The spasms hinder them only when they bowl and not when they bat or play tennis or golf.

They are both born on the same day but the two brothers are as different as two individuals can get. But when it comes to playing for Australia both play with a passion that typifies the Aussie spirit. The two brothers have also given cricket lovers around the world plenty to cheer about.