Five players to look out for in the Australia U19 squad

The Australia U19 squad for their tour of Sri Lanka beginning on January 3 has been announced, and The Cricketer has put together a list of five players it would worth keeping an eye on for the future...

Will Sutherland

Being the son of former Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland could make Will something of a target for opposition players and fans, so it’s lucky that he happens to be quite a handy cricketer.

His early-season performances for Victoria in the JLT One-Day Cup were very impressive. He took 5-45 on his debut against Queensland, a spell which included removing the dangerous Chris Lynn for a duck, and he has managed to get a contract with the Melbourne Renegades for the upcoming Big Bash.

^{Will Sutherland is part of the Melbourne Renegades squad for the Big Bash}

Zak Evans

Much like his roommate Will Sutherland, Zak Evans hails from Victoria and has managed to get himself a contract with the Melbourne Renegades for the upcoming Big Bash season. He is a fast bowler who featured for Australia during the 2018 U19 World Cup and took three wickets at 31.66.

He also put in some strong performances during the recent U19 National Championships in Adelaide, taking 13 wickets at an average of 16.

^{Zak Evans took three wickets at 31.66 during the 2018 U19 World Cup}

Keegan Oates

Tasmania captain Oates was the player of the tournament at the U19 National Championship having finished as leading run-scorer. He scored 430 runs at 71 and went past 50 four times, including an unbeaten 124 against Western Australia.

Winning that award has put him in some esteemed company – Steve Waugh and Adam Gilchrist are just two of the players who also won it. This will be the first time he has represented his county at U19 level, and it will be very interesting to see how he goes.

Baxter Holt

The New South Wales wicketkeeper was another player to impress during the U19 National Championships, as he scored 333 runs at an average of 55. The 19-year-old was also a member of the Australia team which finished as runners-up at the 2018 U19 World Cup.

The story goes that he learnt the basics of wicketkeeping from one Alyssa Healy at the age of 14 – not a bad player to learn off.

^{Baxter Holt scored 66 runs at 22 during the 2018 U19 World Cup}

Oliver Davies

The name Oliver Davies spread rather quickly around the internet when he blasted a remarkable 115-ball double-century which included six sixes in one over during the U19 National Championships in November.

The 18-year-old, who comes from New South Wales, also bowls a little bit of off-spin and describes himself as “batsman with intent”, which may be underselling himself a touch if that double century he scored is anything to go by.