Cricket Australia (CA) has today named the Australian squad for the ICC Men’s Under 19 World Cup in South Africa.
The Youth Selection Panel (YSP) picked a 15-player squad following the conclusion of the 2023 Under 19 Male National Championships in Albury last week.
Australia’s squad will be coached by Anthony Clark, who has also led the Under 19 squad on recent tours of England and Sri Lanka.
January's World Cup will be held in South Africa after the ICC Board confirmed Sri Lanka would be replaced as hosts last month.
The upcoming World Cup is the 15th edition of the Under 19 men's event and will have a revised tournament format, which includes a new Super Six stage after the Group stage to determine the semi-finalists.
Australia will face Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe and Namibia in the group stage with the ICC set to announce updated fixture dates and times in the coming days.
NSW Metro claimed the Rodney Marsh Shield winning the Under 19 National Championships title last week, defeating Queensland in the rain-affected Final by seven wickets (DLS method). Sam Konstas was named player of the final for his 63*.
Tasmania’s Aidan O’Connor (208 runs at 52.00) was awarded the Brian Taber Medal as Player of the Tournament. Votes of 3,2,1 were allocated at the conclusion of each match and tallied throughout the week’s competition to determine the winner.
Australia Under 19 World Cup Squad
Lachlan Aitken (QLD - Gold Coast District Cricket Club)
Charlie Anderson (NSW - Northern District Cricket Club)
Harkirat Bajwa (VIC - Melbourne Cricket Club)
Mahli Beardman (WA - Melville Cricket Club)
Tom Campbell (QLD - Western Suburbs District Cricket Club)
Harry Dixon (VIC - St Kilda Cricket Club)
Ryan Hicks (NSW - Mosman Cricket Club)
Sam Konstas (NSW - Sutherland Cricket Club)
Rafael MacMillan (NSW - St George District Cricket Club)
Aidan O’Connor (TAS - Greater Northern Raiders)
Harjas Singh (NSW - Western Suburbs Cricket Club)
Tom Straker (NSW - Sutherland District Cricket Club)
Callum Vidler (QLD - Valley District Cricket Club)
Corey Wasley (WA - Rockingham-Mandurah Cricket Club)
Hugh Weibgen (QLD - Valley District Cricket Club)
Non-travelling reserve players
Xander Buxton (VIC - Melbourne Cricket Club)
Cameron Frendo (NSW - Fairfield Liverpool Cricket Club)
Ollie Peake (VIC - Geelong Cricket Club)
Cody Reynolds (QLD - Gold Coast District Cricket Club)
Sonya Thompson, Cricket Australia’s Head of National Development, said:
“It’s been exciting to see the amount of talent on display at this year’s Under 19 Male National Championships. We’ve seen some fantastic individual performances and I’d like to congratulate NSW Metro on their win.
“The upcoming Under 19 World Cup provides players with an excellent development opportunity, and we look forward to watching this squad perform on the world stage.
“The National Youth Selection Panel worked closely with State Talent Managers to select the World Cup Squad. Consideration is given to performances across a variety of competitions. Many of those in the World Cup squad also had development opportunities during tours to Sri Lanka and England this year.
“Inevitably, there were difficult selection decisions, but we will continue to support and monitor the development of all players in our pathway systems.”
2023 Under 19 Male National Championships Award Winners
Champions: NSW Metro
Player of the Final: Sam Konstas (NSW Metro)
Player of the Tournament: Aidan O’Connor (Tasmania)
Highest Run Scorer: Tom Campbell (Queensland), 290 runs at 58.00
Leading Wicket Taker: James Scott (Tasmania) 17 wickets at 14.27
Spirit of Cricket: ACT