As Australia's world champion cricketers arrive in the UK to bombard England's batsmen with some fast deliveries a Lancashire man has gone 'Down Under' to help bowl the Aussie business world over.
When this summer's battle for The Ashes - the sport's most prestigious test series - gets into full swing, Blackburn-born businessman Bob Black will be 12,000 miles away overseeing some pacy deliveries and pushing back the business boundaries for express delivery experts TNT.
As the newly appointed Managing Director for TNT Australia, Bob has swapped his role as Chief Operating Officer for TNT Express Services in the UK to lead the company's Australian operation out of Sydney.
After 26 years with TNT in this country - he started out in a role loading and unloading express delivery vehicles at Clayton le Moors in Accrington - Bob (44) has taken up the challenge of leading a workforce of nearly 5,000 people and making TNT the top business-to-business express operator in Australia.
It's fair to say Bob has come a long way since his childhood in Great Harwood, his education at St. Augustine's Secondary School in Billington before progressing to Accrington and Rossendale College and eventually onto Manchester University.
2009 is also proving to be a memorable year on a personal for Bob after his wife Corrine had an extra special delivery earlier in February, with the birth of their baby daughter, Orlaith.
Bob said: "I've had a fantastic time with TNT in the UK in a career where I have been given every opportunity to develop and learn and ultimately achieve levels of success I never even dreamed of more than 20 years ago.
"The move to Australia has to be the highlight of my career and I will be doing everything I can to ensure TNT remains successful in the country of its origin. On a personal note, it's a great adventure for us all but we will really miss our family and friends here in the UK."