Nathan Lyon is called “Garry” because his nickname comes from former AFL star Garry Lyon, whose surname he shares, and it really took off after wicketkeeper Matthew Wade kept yelling “Nice, Garry!” into the stump mic during Tests, which then went viral with fans.

Origin of the nickname

  • The “Garry” nickname is a reference to Garry Lyon, a famous Australian Football League player and Melbourne Demons captain turned TV pundit, who shares the same last name as Nathan.
  • Teammates picked up on the shared surname and started calling Nathan “Garry/Garry Lyon,” which quickly shortened to “Gaz” and “Gazza” in typical Aussie fashion.

“Nice, Garry!” and going viral

  • During a Test series around 2016, wicketkeeper Matthew Wade was constantly heard on the stump mic shouting “Nice, Garry!” after Lyon bowled, and the chant became a running joke and hype line for fans.
  • Clips of Wade’s “Nice, Garry!” call trended on social media, spawned memes, compilation videos, and even merchandise, cementing “Garry” as Lyon’s most famous nickname.

How Lyon feels about it

  • Lyon has said he enjoys being called Garry , and that people of all ages yell “Nice, Garry!” to him in the street, which he finds fun and motivating.
  • He has even worn boots with “Nice Garry!” printed on them during the Big Bash, a nod to how much the nickname has become part of his public identity.

TL;DR: Nathan Lyon is called “Garry” because of AFL legend Garry Lyon, and the nickname exploded into a cultural meme once Matthew Wade’s loud “Nice, Garry!” stump-mic calls went viral.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.