Cooper Connolly earns maiden Australian call-up for white-ball tour of United Kingdom
Australia has announced its squad for the upcoming white-ball tour of the United Kingdom, with West Australian young gun Cooper Connolly earning his maiden international call-up.
On Monday afternoon, Cricket Australia unveiled its touring party for September’s tour of Scotland and England, which features three T20Is against Scotland in Edinburgh along with three T20Is and five ODIs against England across the United Kingdom, including a 50-over clash at Lord’s on September 27.
Connolly, who steered the Perth Scorchers to a remarkable victory in last year’s Big Bash League final against the Brisbane Heat, has been vaulted into the T20 squad, while fellow rising stars Xavier Bartlett, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie and Spencer Johnson earned a recall.
“It’s exciting, we haven’t had that many bolters in a little while,” chair of selectors George Bailey told reporters on Monday.
“He’s an exciting young talent. Hasn’t played a great many games of cricket yet, but we really like his versatility.
“His work through the middle order for Scorchers has been really impressive.”
Fraser-McGurk, who turned heads during an explosive campaign with the Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League earlier this year, is expected to replace the retired David Warner at the top of the order in the T20 side.
“Jake has shown there’s enormous potential,” Bailey said.
“The step up to consistent international cricket will be challenge. You’re faced with a high-end opposition, you’re faced with different conditions.
“Just the back-to-back nature of international cricket can be a challenge as well, so looking forward to seeing how Jake handles that when he gets his opportunity.”
Spinner Ashton Agar and wicketkeeper Matthew Wade, who represented Australia during last month’s T20 World Cup campaign in the Caribbean, have both been dropped, while Steve Smith, currently one the leading run-scorers of this season’s Major League Cricket, also missed selection for the T20 squad.
Victorian batter Matthew Short will remain home for the birth of his first child before joining the Australian squad for the ODIs against England, while Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Starc will miss the T20 fixtures due to workload management.
Australian Test captain Pat Cummins, who is about to begin his maiden campaign with the San Francisco Unicorns in Major League Cricket, has been rested for the entire tour, with all-rounder Mitchell Marsh leading both sides in his absence.
“This is something we’ve been planning for (Cummins) for about 12 months,” Bailey explained.
“If you look through what the Australian cricket schedule looks like from the time Pakistan hit our shores later this year, it’s really busy.”
Meanwhile, South Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey has earned a recall after he was dropped from the ODI side during last year’s World Cup in India, serving as Josh Inglis’ understudy in the United Kingdom.
“Those roles have flipped a little bit,” Bailey continued.
“Josh has been on a lot of one-day tours as Carey’s understudy. At the moment, Josh has the opportunity to take the gloves as the as No. 1 wicketkeeper across T20 and one-day cricket. We’re excited to keep giving him that opportunity.”
Connolly made his first-class debut during March’s Sheffield Shield final, blasting 90 (115) during the 377-run victory against Tasmania at the WACA.
The 20-year-old, who captained Australia at the Under-19 World Cup in 2022, scored 181 runs at 22.62 with a strike rate of 136.09 during last summer’s Big Bash.
Earlier this month, Connolly signed a two-year contract extension with the Scorchers, keeping him at the Perth-based franchise until 2027.
“The last couple of years have been pretty surreal – that BBL|12 Final, and then playing a bit more last year – so I’m excited to see what the next few seasons hold,” Connolly said in a statement.
“It’s still pretty early in my career so I’m honestly just trying to soak up as much as I can from my teammates and our coaches, who do a great job preparing us each week.”
20yo Big Bash hero earns maiden Aussie call-up as World Cup stars axed for UK tour
www.foxsports.com.au
