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Cricket Australia (CA) on March 3 named Cooper Connolly as replacement for an injured Matthew Short ahead of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 semifinal. The opener sustained a injury during the match against Afghanistan and was struggling to walk. The replacement was approved by the International Cricket Council (ICC) technical committee on March 3.
Despite naming a replacement, Australian selectors will have a headache picking Travis Head's opening partner. The obvious like-for-like replacement is young Jake Fraser-McGurk but he is yet to prove his worth in ODIs.
If Aarron Hardie or Connolly walk into the side, it will lead to a shuffle in the batting order. Hardie is a pace-bowling all-rounder who has batted at the top. On the other hand, Connolly is a left-arm orthodox spinner. The 21-year-old Connolly has scored just 10 runs from three ODIs. Hardie has played 13 ODIs and scored 166 runs at an average of 16.60. He has 10 wickets under his belt as well.
Alex Carey is an option to open alongside Head but won't provide the left-right combination at the top. Australia skipper Steve Smith faces a conundrum ahead of the semifinal clash against Rohit Sharma-led India on March 4. Considering the help for spinners in Dubai, Connolly has an upper hand over Hardie but still untested.
Other batters who can bowl spin are Marnus Labuschagne, Head and Glenn Maxwell alongside speciallist Adam Zampa. Connolly may provide variety to the attack but Australia need a batter in testing conditions of Dubai where it would be hard to score, unlike Pakistan.
Australia's updated squad for ICC Champions Trophy 2025
Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Spencer Johnson, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Adam Zampa, Cooper Connolly.
