Nielsen expected to debut for Redbacks

Harry Nielsen, the son of former Australia coach and South Australia wicketkeeper Tim Nielsen, is poised to make his first-class debut after being named as the sole gloveman in the West End Redbacks' 12-man squad for their JLT Sheffield Shield clash against Victoria.

The 22-year old’s inclusion follows first-choice wicketkeeper Alex Carey’s call-up to Australia’s T20 squad for the Gillette T20 INTL tri-series against England and New Zealand.

His father Tim, the current General Manager of High Performance at the SACA, played 92 first-class matches for South Australia across a near-decade long career, finishing with 286 dismissals.

Carey’s ascension has already benefited Nielsen once this season, with the youngster having made his BBL debut for the Adelaide Strikers in last Friday’s semi-final against the Renegades when Carey was on national duties.

However the emerging gloveman’s previous exposure to top-flight cricket should help temper any nerves he might feel ahead of his debut.

Last summer, the then-21-year-old was whisked from his Premier Cricket match for Woodville to keep to South Africa’s star-studded pace attack of Dale Steyn, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel and Kyle Abbott after Proteas gloveman Quinton de Kock was forced to withdraw from their tour match due to illness.

He finished with four catches, including a difficult high swirling top-edge, and wasn’t required to bat as the Proteas romped to a comfortable win over their young opponents.

The last-minute call-up wasn’t his first brush with cricketing fame either, having filled in for the CA XI two seasons prior against a touring India Test team led by Virat Kohli.

On that occasion, Nielsen finished with a brisk 43* from 30 balls batting at No.10, sharing in a final-wicket stand of 52 runs.

Nielsen’s call-up comes on the back of more conventional, and recent, performances however, having averaged 49 for the CA XI in the JLT Cup earlier in the summer, highlighted by a whirlwind knock of 94 against Victoria at Hurstville Oval.

The young gloveman then followed up his tidy BBL debut behind the stumps with a century in the West End One Day Cup on the weekend for Woodville.

For Victoria, Peter Handscomb returns to captain the Bushrangers in their first Shield match of the new year, before he and teammate Jon Holland depart for Australia’s Test tour of South Africa.

South Australia 12-man squad: Tom Cooper (c), Tom Andrews, John Dalton, Jake Lehmann, Joe Mennie, Harry Nielsen, Alex Ross, Chadd Sayers, Kelvin Smith, Jake Weatherald, Nick Winter, Daniel Worrall

Victoria 12-man squad: Peter Handscomb (C), Scott Boland, Jackson Coleman, Travis Dean, Seb Gotch, Marcus Harris, Jon Holland, Matthew Short, Peter Siddle, Chris Tremain, Eamonn Vines, Cameron White