Victoria retain Pucovski, face looming medical review

Big Bash sensation Josh Brown has scored his first state deal at Victoria with the state also confirming Will Pucovski would remain on the contract list for next season, pending medical advice.

Pucovski's future has been in limbo since suffering another concussion in March when he was forced to retire hurt against Tasmania after being hit by speedster Riley Meredith.

The 26-year-old hasn't played since and was forced to withdraw from a planned county stint with Leicestershire, where Victorian teammate Marcus Harris took his place and hit a superb double-century last month.

Cricket Victoria said they were working closely with Cricket Australia with an expert medical panel due to meet in the coming weeks to review Pucovski's history and discuss his future.

"Understandably, there will be a lot of interest in Will Pucovski and what the future holds; the most important part of this process is Will and his health and wellbeing," said Graham Manou, CV's high performance general manager.

"Cricket Victoria is working closely with Cricket Australia and the expert medical panel that is due to meet soon to review Will's history.

"We'll take the advice from that panel on the appropriate way forward this season."

Victoria men's 2024-25 contract list: Liam Blackford, Scott Boland*, Dylan Brasher, Josh Brown, Ashley Chandrasinghe, Xavier Crone, Sam Elliott, Peter Handscomb, Sam Harper, Marcus Harris, Campbell Kellaway, Glenn Maxwell*, Cameron McClure, Jono Merlo, Todd Murphy*, Fergus O’Neill, Mitch Perry, Will Pucovski**, Tom Rogers, Matt Short*, Peter Siddle, Will Sutherland, Douglas Warren. Rookies: Austin Anlezark, Harry Dixon, Jai Lemire, Reiley Mark, Tyler Pearson

 

Ins: Josh Brown (Queensland). Liam Blackford, Dylan Brasher, Douglas Warren (upgraded from rookie contracts) 

 

Outs: Travis Dean (delisted), Matt Fotia (delisted), Nic Maddinson (NSW), Tom O'Donnell (delisted), Wil Parker (delisted)

 

* Denotes Cricket Australia contract
** Pending medical advice

Having lost star batter Nic Maddinson, who peeled off three consecutive centuries in the second half of the Marsh Sheffield Shield season, with the left-hander returning home to NSW, the Vics have turned to new Melbourne Renegades recruit Brown to fill a batting shortfall in their squad for next season.

The 30-year-old power-hitter signed a two-year deal to join the Renegades from the Heat last month and will now move to Melbourne full-time.

While Brown lit up the KFC BBL|13 finals with a stunning 57-ball 140 to put the Heat into the decider, he has only played one List A match since bursting onto the scene in January 2023.

Victoria will be hoping his form for Northern Suburbs in Queensland Premier Cricket, where he has hit two hundreds and five half-centuries striking at more than 100 in the two-day format over the past two season, can translate into some Marsh One-Day Cup and potentially first-class success.

The Vics have also locked away rising star Fergus O'Neill on a three-year deal after a combined 52-wicket season in both competitions to securing the Bill Lawry and Dean Jones medals as their Sheffield Shield and one-day player of the season.

Australia Under-19 World Cup-winning opener Harry Dixon has earned a rookie deal after also signing with the Renegades last season, while Shield skipper Will Sutherland and fellow quicks Mitch Perry and Cameron McClure have also re-signed.

Alongside Dixon, promising young players Reily Mark, Austin Anlezark, Jai Lemire and Tyler Pearson have scored rookie deals, while Liam Blackford, Dylan Brasher and spinner Douglas Warren – who made his first-class debut in November – have been promoted to full contracts.

Cricket Victoria Head of Male Cricket David Hussey said he was looking forward to building on the growth over the last three seasons.

"While we didn't clinch titles last season, there were some real positives for us – the emergence of Fergus O'Neill as a key player in our side and the selections of Will Sutherland and Matt Short for Australia shows that we are doing a lot of things right," Hussey said.

"We're also looking forward to welcoming some new talent into the squad from Premier Cricket and Australia under-19 representation – a testament to the work that has been achieved in our talent pathways."

Dropping off the contract list alongside Maddinson is leg-spinner Wil Parker, who has joined Collingwood AFL club as a category B rookie, 2018-19 Sheffield Shield-winning captain Travis Dean and quicks Matt Fotia and Tom O'Donnell.

"I'd like to thank and congratulate Travis Dean on his contribution to Victoria at the elite level," Hussey said.

"Travis signed with Victoria ahead of the 2015-16 season and scored centuries in both innings of his Shield debut in October 2015.

"He has played 88 times for Victoria across Shield and one-day cricket and should be proud of his achievements and titles."

You'll want the best seat in the house for this season's action! Priority access for tickets opens June 4 – Register now