Scorchers rising star Cooper Connolly has continued his meteoric rise, after the young allrounder was among a quartet of Scorchers named in Australia's white-ball squads for a tour of the United Kingdom.
Connolly among Scorchers quartet named for UK Tour
Australia plays three T20 Internationals against Scotland and England followed by five One-Day Internationals against England in the UK in September.
Connolly has received his maiden national team call-up, following several eye-catching performances in his first two seasons with Perth Scorchers in the KFC Big Bash League.
The news comes just days after the 20-year-old signed a new contract extension to stay with the Scorchers until the end of BBL|16.
The dynamic left-hander took just four professional games to showcase his immense talent on the national stage, guiding the Scorchers to the BBL|12 title with a famous cameo against Brisbane Heat at Optus Stadium.
His nerveless 25 not-out from 11 deliveries – compiled alongside recently re-signed batter Nick Hobson in front of 53,588 fans – reignited a run-chase that flickered feebly as he entered the fray.
Connolly, who first signed for Perth in 2021-22, backed up the breakout performance by playing every game of the Scorchers’ BBL|13 campaign.
Connolly has been earmarked as a player of considerable talent from an early age, having represented Australia at the ICC Under 19 World Cup in 2022. His leadership skills are also highly regarded, captaining the side to a third-place finish.
Australian T20 squad:
Mitchell Marsh (Perth Scorchers/Fremantle Cricket Club) (c)
Xavier Bartlett (Brisbane Heat/Gold Coast District Cricket Club)
Cooper Connolly (Perth Scorchers/Scarborough Cricket Club)
Tim David (Hobart Hurricanes/Claremont-Nedlands Cricket Club)
Nathan Ellis (Hobart Hurricanes/ Lindisfarne Cricket Club)
Jake Fraser-McGurk (Melbourne Renegades/West Torrens Cricket Club)
Cameron Green (WA/Subiaco-Floreat Cricket Club)
Aaron Hardie (Perth Scorchers/Willetton Cricket Club)
Josh Hazlewood (NSW/St George Cricket Club)
Travis Head (Adelaide Strikers/Tea Tree Gully Cricket Club)
Josh Inglis (Perth Scorchers/Joondalup Cricket Club)
Spencer Johnson (Brisbane Heat/West Torrens Cricket Club)
Marcus Stoinis (Melbourne Stars/Subiaco Floreat Cricket Club)
Adam Zampa (Melbourne Renegades/Sutherland Cricket Club)
Australian ODI squad:
Mitchell Marsh (WA/Fremantle Cricket Club) (c)
Sean Abbott (NSW/Parramatta District Cricket Club)
Alex Carey (SA/Glenelg Cricket Club)
Cameron Green (WA/Subiaco-Floreat Cricket Club)
Nathan Ellis (TAS/ Lindisfarne Cricket Club)
Jake Fraser-McGurk (SA/West Torrens Cricket Club)
Aaron Hardie (WA/Willetton Cricket Club)
Josh Hazlewood (NSW/St George Cricket Club)
Josh Inglis (WA/Joondalup Cricket Club)
Travis Head (SA/Tea Tree Gully Cricket Club)
Marnus Labuschagne (QLD/Redlands Cricket Club)
Glenn Maxwell (VIC/Fitzroy Doncaster Cricket Club)
Matthew Short ((VIC/Northcote Cricket Club)
Steve Smith (NSW/Sutherland Cricket Club)
Mitchell Starc (NSW/Manly Warringah Cricket Club)
Adam Zampa (NSW/Sutherland Cricket Club)
Scorchers allrounder Mitchell Marsh returns to the squad, after being managed in the last ODI series at home against the West Indies. Aswell as his regular T20 captaincy duties, Marsh will lead the side during the ODI component of the Tour, in the absence of regular 50-over skipper Pat Cummins.
Wicketkeeper batter Josh Inglis was also included in the travelling squad, after becoming Australia's preferred keeper in both limited-overs format over the past 18 months.
Powerful allrounder Aaron Hardie features in both squads, following a promising start to his international career.
Chair of men’s selectors George Bailey said:
“This tour gives us a great opportunity to bring in some new players in the absence of David Warner and Matthew Wade, as well as giving some senior players time to prepare for the home summer and a busy first half of next year.
“We are particularly pleased to offer Cooper his first opportunity in the T20 squad having introduced the likes of Jake, Spencer, Xavier and Aaron in the past 12 months.
“They are exciting prospects to join the likes of Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis and Josh Inglis in the white ball setup.
“With the Champions Trophy on our doorstep early next year, the white ball series against Pakistan leading into the summer and a huge home Test series against India there has been a lot of planning invested into these next six months.
“That has included gradual integration of new players into our white ball squads who have earned international opportunities via excellent form in Big Bash or State cricket.”