A short ball bounced well over the youngster's head, but he used a vertical bat to miraculously smash it over the long off fence for six.
"It was like he was serving a tennis ball," one commentator said.
"I don't know how to describe the way he played that shot," another added. "That was sensational timing from Austin Waugh. That was an absolute ripping six.
"Look at where he's hit that - that's three or four inches over his head."
It really did resemble a forehand smash - the likes of which we're more likely to see in January at Melbourne Park during the Australian Open. As his father's career came to a close, he put some of the more attacking shots away and played more compactly and with less flair. But as a gun youngster in the Australian middle order in his early days, he was known for his aggressive ways.
His son has clearly picked up some of that.
Taking a tennis-type shot onto the cricket field might not be so unbelievable when you consider the family's background. Steve Waugh's mother Bev was a talented tennis player and his father Rodger was state champion as a teenager. Both Steve and twin brother Mark were talented tennis players too.
Judging on what we saw, Austin probably isn't too bad with a racquet either.
He was dismissed in the final over for 27 off 28 balls, leaving his side needing eight runs to win off the final three deliveries. Will Sutherland - captain and son of Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland - came to the rescue, hitting a three and then two boundaries to secure the victory.
Cricket Australia's pathways manager Graham Manou laughed the first time he saw Austin Waugh play cricket because the similarities with his famous father were so striking.
"It was very scary, the first time I saw him, his mannerisms," Manou said. "Genetically, I suppose you'd expect (it) but it's like he's watched a tape of his old man for years. They're very, very similar."
The teenager showed his class at the Under-17 National Championships in October. He top-scored for NSW Metro in the final with 122 off 136 balls, a knock which included four fours and four sixes.
He turned heads throughout the tournament, scoring 372 runs at an average of 74.4. Only Queensland's Angus Lovell - who hit two centuries and three half centuries at 80.17 - outscored him.
Speaking after his match-winning dig in the decider, Waugh said he wasn't trying to copy his father.
"My dad's always been around for me so it's good to talk to him and he knows a lot about the game so he's been a good influence on my cricketing career so far," he said.
"I haven't really copied him, I've just tried to make my own technique and play the way that I want to play."
Manou said the innings was a reflection of the youngster's maturity.
"The hundred in the 17s was probably a year or two above his age," he said. "He certainly came out and just changed the pace of the game, which is something, from my perspective, that we're looking for.
"At times he did that in the Under-19s and if he looks back, on reflection ... probably didn't capitalise as well as he'd hoped. But there's a hell of a lot to like there from Austin."
Playing for the Cricket Australia XI at the Under-19 championships in December, Waugh hit 53 on the opening day of the tournament.
- with AAP
