Early Test Career
Matthews is a tough, useful, determined little cricketer; a steady, flat, off-spin bowler; a staunch, correct left-hand bat; and a brilliant fielder. He is also a cocky, slightly zany character.
- Christopher Martin-Jenkins
Early in his cricketing career Matthews was regarded "as a bowler who fielded energetically and could bat a bit" and a "complete extrovert, dressing to shock". He was usually referred to a Greg, but his teammates nicknamed him 'Mo', "short for 'misère', which he always called when we played five hundred". Matthews enjoyed clubbing and ignored the midnight curfew imposed by New South Wales fast bowler Geoff Lawson as "these were his socialising hours and the time he came to life", and his mantra was "'live each day as if it's your last'". He was first picked for the Australia against Pakistan in the Fourth Test at Melbourne in 1983-84, taking 2/95 and 2/48, running out Zaheer Abbas in the first innings and bowling him in the second. With the bat he made 75, joining Graham Yallop (268) on 354/7 and adding 185 together for the eighth wicket. The Test was drawn and Matthews was kept for the Fifth Test and was Greg Chappell's batting partner when he was dismissed for 182 in his final Test innings.
Dennis Lillee and Rod Marsh also retired and the Australian Test team was further weakened by the Rebel Tour of South Africa in 1984-85. This provided opportunities for ambitious young players, but Matthews was initially unable to capitalise. He was taken on the unsuccessful tour of the West Indies in 1983-84, where he played in the Fifth Test and was a makeshift opener in the second innings as Steve Smith was injured.
At home he played another one-off Test against the West Indies in the Fourth Test, dismissing Viv Richards (208) and Clive Lloyd (91) with his 2/67 in a draw that ended their 11 match winning streak. He was not one of the three spinners chosen for the Fifth Test on his home ground at Sydney where Australia won by an innings.
Nevertheless he was taken to England in 1985, where he proved popular in the county matches. In the One Day Internationals Matthews batted at number eight and hit the winning runs at Old Trafford (22 not out) and Lord's (29 not out) as Australia won the Texaco Trophy 2-1. In the Third Test at Trent Bridge he mixed with the crowd and read a newspaper in the stands; "Matthews of the petit-punk hair and puppet movements...has a happy knack of winding up crowds". In the Test series he only played in the Fourth Test because Graeme Wood was injured and again volunteered to open the innings, but also ran out Allan Lamb from extra cover. Matthews had now played in five Test matches, but had only made 139 runs (19.85) and taken 7 wikcets (45.28) and was far from establishing his place in the Australia team.
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