Kuhnemann turns to veteran tweaker for subcontinent edge

Australia A newcomer Matt Kuhnemann has sought the expertise of one of the country's most experienced left-arm finger spinners as he readies himself for next month's tour of Sri Lanka.

With the 'A' squad playing two one-day matches before the ODI series, and two first-class matches prior to the two Tests, selectors have already flagged that strong performances in those games could sway their personnel choices for the full internationals.

And Kuhnemann, who is riding a wave of confidence after a breakout season with Queensland as the Marsh Sheffield Shield's leading spinner last summer (25 wickets at 31), has turned to NSW veteran Steve O'Keefe for an edge in unfamiliar conditions.

O'Keefe, 37, continues to ply his trade for the Sydney Sixers as one of the country's most effective tweakers, while his nine-Test career (35 wickets at 29) was exclusively played in either Asia or on the traditionally spin-friendly Sydney Cricket Ground.

One of those Tests was in Sri Lanka in 2016, in which he took three wickets, while the following year he famously claimed match figures of 12-70 against India in Pune.

Image Id: 06264037F60C446CA803441819A90094 Image Caption: Kuhnemann bowls during the Marsh Cup last season // Getty

"Marnus (Labuschagne) gave me his number during the Big Bash, and I had a bowl with him before our game against the Sixers at the Gabba," Kuhnemann told cricket.com.au.

"I kept in touch with him and then sent him a text message during this off-season … he said he was free, so I flew down to Sydney, caught the ferry over to Manly and had a bowl at his club, which was awesome.

"(We talked about) just having that mindset of being present over there, being prepared to adapt to whatever the conditions are, and working out Sri Lankan batters, who are a bit more aggressive than Australian batters with their sweep shots, and thinking about fields and that sort of stuff.

"It was awesome. I'm so pumped to get over there."

While Brisbane's unseasonably wet autumn had until this week prevented the left-arm orthodox spinner from bowling on turf wickets, he and Queensland teammate Mitch Swepson have instead accessed the National Cricket Centre's indoor set-up regularly, while also enjoying two sessions on the hybrid pitch at that venue, which is designed to replicate subcontinental conditions.

The pair has also teamed up with spin guru John Davison, under whom they developed their games considerably at the Bulls.

"Working with those two guys, we talked about seam access, and arm angles, that sort of stuff," Kuhnemann adds.

"We've been experimenting with a few different balls, and it's been nice to have 'Davo' (John Davison) around again, I worked with him for five years at Queensland Cricket and he's one of the best."

Australia are due to fly out to Colombo from Melbourne next Wednesday, with the T20I series kicking off the tour on June 7.

Qantas Tour of Sri Lanka, 2022

T20 squad: Aaron Finch (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner, Matthew Wade

June 7: First T20, Colombo

June 8: Second T20, Colombo

June 11: Third T20, Kandy

ODI squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

June 14: First ODI, Kandy

June 16: Second ODI, Kandy

June 19: Third ODI, Colombo

June 21: Fourth ODI, Colombo

June 24: Fifth ODI, Colombo

Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

June 29 - July 3: First Test, Galle

July 8-12: Second Test, Galle

Australia A fixtures

Squad: Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Pete Handscomb, Aaron Hardie, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Henry Hunt, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nic Maddinson, Todd Murphy, Josh Philippe, Matt Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, Tanveer Sangha, Mark Steketee

June 8: First one-day game v Sri Lanka A, Colombo

June 10: Second one-day game v Sri Lanka A, Colombo

June 14-17: first-class tour match v Sri Lanka A, Hambantota

June 21-24: first-class tour match v Sri Lanka A, Hambantota