As his latest comeback gains further steam, quick Jhye Richardson chuckled at a rather amusing question from a reporter before he pondered.

Having last month had a scare with his troubled shoulder after animatedly celebrating a wicket against South Australia in his long-awaited Sheffield Shield return, Richardson was asked whether he could still high-five teammates.

“I think I just got caught in a funny position over there in Adelaide, probably just got a little bit too excited and decided to slap a few hands a little bit too hard,” a grinning Richardson told reporters after starring with 3 for 19 in Perth Scorchers’ six-wicket victory over Melbourne Stars in the BBL season-opener at Optus Stadium.

But given his horror run with injuries, including shoulder and hamstring surgeries, Richardson paused in his response and then struck a serious tone.

“I mean, it does sound silly, but … maybe we’ll stick with the low fives instead of the high fives,” he said. “But that’s just another thing that we deal with. I’ve dealt enough with my shoulder over the last few years. It’s just another thing to add to the basket.”

Richardson is wise to take any precautions, no matter how innocuous they might seem to be, given his cursed luck over the years. He is still unable to throw from deep in the outfield due to the shoulder issue and instead has to bowl the ball in or underarm it if he’s closer in.

Richardson’s been limited to just three Test matches since debuting against Sri Lanka in January 2019, with the last being a pink-ball game in Adelaide in 2021 when he took his maiden Test five-wicket haul against England.

The succession of injuries means Richardson, 28, has spent plenty of time on the sidelines and become a somewhat forgotten player in Australian cricket.

But Richardson’s been bowling without interruption since his return in this year’s IPL and his improved fitness saw him return to first-class cricket earlier than expected.

Richardson had match figures of 4 for 85 from 29 overs against South Australia in the Shield following four One-Day Cup matches and a couple of second XI games for Western Australia.

Entering the BBL fit and firing, Richardson issued a reminder of why he’s one of the country’s most highly-rated quicks with a spectacular performance against Stars on a bouncy Optus Stadium surface.

Bowling fast and finding swing, he claimed Joe Clarke and Sam Harper in a devastating new ball spell before finishing with the wicket of Beau Webster in the backend of Stars’ innings.

“It felt a little bit different coming into this game, just purely actually having some cricket behind me over the last few months,” Richardson said. “I know last season, I sort of changed my run-up and had all of that I was dealing with and hadn’t played many games before actually coming into the tournament.

“I remember last year feeling probably the most nervous I’ve ever felt on a cricket field before my first ball.

“Today was probably the polar opposite. It felt like I could go out there and actually do what I’m used to doing, which is bowling a cricket ball.”

While Australia’s frontline attack of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, along with back-up quick Scott Boland, have been remarkably consistent and resilient, Richardson offers valuable pace depth and could figure prominently – if he stays fit – amid an expected transition in the coming years.

“Test cricket is obviously the goal,” Richardson said. “I’d love to play Test cricket again. I think it’s difficult having had a taste of it and then having that sort of ripped away.

“I think it’s nice to have goals, but I’m obviously not there at the moment, so it would be unrealistic for me to think about international cricket. What’s realistic is what’s in front of me right now, and that’s playing Big Bash cricket and domestic cricket for WA.

“But I’m hoping to get back there.”