For their tour of England and Scotland, Australia have picked uncapped Cooper Connolly, an all-rounder from Western Australia and Perth Scorchers.
In September 2024, Australia will tour Scotland for three T20Is, and England for five ODIs and three T20Is. The T20I squad for both series includes, among others, 20-year-old Cooper Connolly.
Cooper Connolly - A young prodigy me
A middle-order batter who bowls some left-arm spin, Connolly rose through age-group cricket in Western Australia, graduating from the Under-17s to the Under-19s. He made it to the national squad for the 2020 Under-19 World Cup, where he hit a 53-ball 64 against a West Indies attack that boasted of Jayden Seales.
Two years later, Connolly led Australia at the same tournament. Barring a 25-ball 33 against Pakistan, he was less impressive with the bat this time, but he did return 3-17 against the West Indies and 2-30 against Afghanistan.
The Perth Scorchers drafted him into their squad that August. He faced only 22 balls that season – acorss four games and two innings – but got out only once and struck at 205. One of his outings was in the final, where the Scorchers needed 38 to win in three overs. Still new to the crease, Connolly struck James Bazley for two sixes – one of them truly colossal – and a four to virtually seal the game and left the senior Australian camp in awe.
It was in the second season, however, that he really made an impact. In three consecutive games, he struck a 25-ball 35, 18-ball 37 not out, and 22-ball 31 – while chipping in with 11-0-76-6 across the season.
In the interim period, he had also played four times in the Marsh Cup, the 50-over domestic tournament, for Western Australia. The Sheffield Shield debut was delayed after a boating accident forced him to undergo a toe surgery. When he finally debuted, it was in the final of the 2023/24 season, against Tasmania. Batting at seven, Connolly smashed 90 in 115 balls with 12 fours and three sixes in the first innings.
| Format | Matches | Runs | Average | Strike rate | Wickets | Average | Economy |
| First-class | 1 | 108 | 54.00 | 74 | 0 | 0.00 | |
| List A | 4 | 68 | 17.00 | 91 | 3 | 39.33 | 4.37 |
| T20 | 15 | 226 | 28.25 | 146 | 6 | 15.17 | 7.00 |
| Under-19 ODIs | 8 | 145 | 18.13 | 85 | 5 | 40.80 | 4.05 |
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