Australian white-ball players Billy Stanlake and Sam Heazlett headline 2023 NT Strike League
Australian representatives, BBL stars and NT talent make up a 60 player list set to go head-to-head in the 2023 Strike League competition.
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A pair of Australian white-ball representatives, a host of State and BBL contracted players and plenty of local talent make up the 60 players competing in the 2023 NT Strike League.
More than eight ODIs, 17 T20Is, 138 First Class, 123 List-A and over 250 Big Bash games worth of young talent will be on show throughout the tournament.
Billy Stanlake and Sam Heazlett have represented Australia in ODI and T20I and will this year will join local legends and rising young talent to compete in the country’s premier winter competition.
NT Cricket’s head of cricket Darren Treumer this year’s Strike League was set to take the sport to another level following a fantastic domestic season.
“We have a great mix of young talent coming from around the country,” Treumer said.
“From Perth Scorchers teen sensation Cooper Connolly, Brisbane Heat big hitter Max Bryant, to some of the best young spinners in the country in Lloyd Pope, Wil Parker and Jarrod Freeman.
“Really excited to welcome Billy Stanlake and Sam Heazlett to Strike League for the first time as they seek to work their way back to the form that saw them represent Australia in ODI and T20I cricket.
“Throw in Josh Brown and Ryan Hackney who have already been up here dominating for Nightcliff and Waratah in the local competition, and the scene is set for some cracking cricket.”
Treumer said Strike League was also about enhancing the developing of local emerging talent picking out Tom Menzies as one to watch.
“Tom Menzies is arguably the best young cricketer in the Territory, at 17 years of age this is a great opportunity for him to test himself and showcase his talents,” said Treumer.
The 60 players will fill out the four CDU Strike League franchises, City Cyclones, Desert Blaze, Southern Storm and Northern Tide with coaches Simon Helmot, Shane Jurgensen, Darren Berry and Mark Cosgrove coming on board.
The four sides will compete in 10 50-over games and 11 T20 matches for a total of 21 fixtures played across 37 days and multiple Top End venues from June 25 to July 28.
NT Emerging Players
Jacob Dickman 25yo Darwin
Matt Hammond 26yo Darwin
Charlie Kemp 17yo Darwin
Tom Menzies 17yo Darwin
Harshtik Bimbral 19yo Palmerston
Coby Edmonstone 22 PINT
Michael Kudra 20yo Nightcliff
Hamish Martin 23yo Palmerston
Dylan Mullen 24yo Southern Districts
Sam Elder 20yo Tracy Village
Zayden Lewis 17yo Tracy Village
Hugo Matthias 16yo Waratah
NT Cricket Local Association Players
Anthony Adlam 24yo Darwin (Tasmania)
Matt Calder 23yo Darwin (South Australia)
Angus Sidey 20yo Darwin (New Zealand)
Farzan Chowna 18yo PINT (Victoria)
Mitch Doolan 20yo PINT (Victoria)
Dhanusha Gamage 20yo PINT (Victoria)
Douwtjie Hoogenboezem 19yo Nightcliff (Western Australia)
Caelan Maladay 21yo Nightcliff (New South Wales)
Tom McGann 20yo Palmerston (Tasmania)
Keegan Oates 23yo Palmerston (Tasmania)
Lochie Hardy 21yo Southern Districts (Western Australia)
Corey Hunter 22yo Southern Districts (Queensland)
Jackson Isakka 21yo Southern Districts (New South Wales)
Tom Jackson 23yo Southern Districts (South Australia)
Josh Kann 23yo Southern Districts (South Australia)
Brodie Symons 23yo Southern Districts (Victoria)
Vincent Huf 18yo Tracy Village (Victoria)
Isaac Conway 26yo Waratah (South Australia)
Jagadeswara Kodru 20yo Waratah (Victoria)
Jason Sangha 23to Waratah (New South Wales)
Param Uppal 24yo Waratah (Tasmania)
Jack Wood 27yo Waratah (South Australia)
State and Territory Nominated Players
Hanno Jacobs 21yo ACT
Zak Keogh 21yo ACT
Tom Vane-Tempest 25yo ACT
Liam Doddrell 20yo NSW
Ryan Hackney 23yo NSW
Toby Gray 21yo NSW
Hunar Verma 21yo NSW
Kyle Brazell 21yo SA
Isaac Higgins 20yo SA
Ryan King 21yo SA
Lloyd Pope 23yo SA
Seamus Keogh 21yo SA
Jarrod Freeman 22yo TAS
Billy Stanlake 28yo TAS
Jesse Willmott 18yo TAS
Josh Brown 29yo QLD
Max Bryant 24yo QLD
Sam Heazlett 27yo QLD
Angus Lovell 23yo QLD
Harrish Kannan 19yo VIC
Wil Parker 21yo VIC
Reiley Mark 20yo VIC
Cooper Connolly 19yo WA
Joel Curtis 23yo WA
Jayden Goodwin 21yo WA
Waheguru Dhillon 23yo WA
‘Untapped gem’: Strike League reveals new head coaches
Former champion Sheffield Shield wicket keeper and short form coaching specialist Darren Berry will oversee one of the franchises in the Strike League from next month.
Berry will join several other mentors with elite level experience set to marshall Strike League outfits, including Simon Helmot (Melbourne Renegades), Shane Jurgensen (New Zealand national bowling coach) and Mark Cosgrove (three ODIs for Australia) from June 25.
The 21-game Strike League will consist of a mixture of 50-over and T20 fixtures and run until July 28.
The 53-year-old has coached the Adelaide Strikers and was an assistant at the Sydney Sixers under Greg Shipperd, plus stints with Islamabad in the Pakistan Super League and alongside the late Shane Warne at the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL as a team manager.
Berry, currently director of coaching at Rowville Secondary College, said the Strike League continued to grow in stature and he was excited to take part.
“The facilities are first class and the climate this time of year makes it a great destination for players to develop their game,” Berry said.
“Cricket in the Territory is an untapped gem and what NT Cricket are doing with Cricket 365 is a great example of the enormous potential up here.”
Meanwhile, Jurgensen, who has previously coached Bangladesh, Fiji and the Rangpur Riders in the Bangladesh Premier League, was looking for some personal coaching development and experience with a three-month window opening up.
“The Strike League seemed like a great fit and New Zealand Cricket were very supportive,” Jurgensen said.
“I’m looking forward to the challenge of bringing a group of talented young cricketers together quickly and helping some young players on their journey.”
Helmot, returning from a spell in the IPL as an assistant coach at Sunrisers Hyderabad, has also been involved at several T20 leagues across the globe.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time coaching in overseas leagues, so I was keen to spend these few months in Australia,” he said.
“The chance to come up to Darwin, be part of a competition I have heard a lot of good things about and help coach and shape some of Australia’s best young talent coming through the system was the perfect opportunity.”
Cosgrove, a high performance coach with the SA Cricket Association, will return for his second stint with the Strike League after guiding the Northern Tide in 2022.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my Strike League experience last year,” Cosgrove said.
“The standard of cricket was excellent.
“The facilities were brilliant, and Darwin is a great place to spend a few months in the winter.”
NT chief executive Gavin Dovey said he was thrilled to see an internationally respected group appointed as head coaches and it was another step up for the emerging competition.
“Strike League was already without doubt the best place for our country’s emerging talent to spend their winter in Australia,” Dovey said.
“Players are now going to be coached and mentored by guys with decades of experience at the highest levels of the game.
“Coaches who are currently coaching the best players in the world.”
It will highlight a massive few months of cricket in Darwin, with the Under 19 World Cup qualifiers (June 12-21) and the Top End T20 series in August also coming up.
Meanwhile, Dylan Slater, Himesh Silva, Karl Mayne and Madura Weerasinghe will be assistant coaches during the Strike League.
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Originally published as Australian white-ball players Billy Stanlake and Sam Heazlett headline 2023 NT Strike League
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