was initially reported as a muscle strain. "If I didn't need the operation I could go out and bowl 30 overs now", he said at the time. "That's the good thing about it. I feel as strong as a bull." O'Donnell commenced chemotherapy and received the good wishes of Prime Minister Bob Hawke. Three months later O'Donnell was declared cancer free. 1988–89: Victorian Captain Simon O'Donnell was appointed Victorian captain at the beginning of the 1988–89 season. He told the press: It will be a win-at-all costs approach. We're going to go out and give 110 per cent-over four days of every Shield game. If you give 110 per cent, you'll win a lot more games than you lose. I've been 12 months out of the game but if I see a ball I think I can hit, I will hit it... It's a big part of the captaincy so everyone knows where they stand. A happy team turns into a confident team and wins matches. But I have a hell of a lot to learn. It's my first shot at it and I will be listening to a lot of people. People who are willing to give advice and have a bit of a yarn. O'Donnell's highlights for the summer included 6–54 against NSW. Victoria performed poorly in the Sheffield Shield that summer, ultimately coming last. O'Donnell's captaincy was often criticised for being over generous in his declarations. "Our Shield program has gone off the rails a bit because we've let ourselves down badly as a team", O'Donnell said. "We've batted well or we've bowled well but we haven't combined the two." However Victoria did make the finals of the one day FAI Cup. O'Donnell was selected in the Australian one day team that summer. His first game back was a successful one, taking 1–45 and scoring 46 off 54 balls against Pakistan. He was dropped from the side after the first final. Through the 1989 English summer, O'Donnell played club cricket for Haslingden. He played a game for the Rest of the World against Glamorgan and scored 66 off 23 balls. He played in the Australian one day team that toured India in late 1989, and had a mediocre tournament with the exception of 3–48 against Sri Lanka. 1989/90 At the beginning of the 1989–90 summer there was some talk that Dean Jones might captain Victoria instead of