As he gets ready to play in just his fourth Sheffield Shield match for Western Australia, Connolly feels he deserves to be called up for the Test and Champions Trophy.
All-rounder Cooper Connolly is back in the comforts of home at the WACA after a hectic time away, where he made his Test debut and opened in the Champions Trophy semi-final against India. Western Australia’s hopes of winning the Sheffield Shield for a record-breaking fourth consecutive year are on the line against Victoria.
WA is now in fourth place, but only 2.37 points behind Queensland, which is in second place, in the battle to play South Australia in the final, which begins on March 26. Victoria has a mathematical chance to qualify as well, behind WA by nearly two points.In addition to defeating Victoria, WA will have to hope that neither Queensland nor New South Wales win their respective games. In a season marred by inconsistency, injury, and unavailability, their attempt to become the first club to win four consecutive titles in the six-team era—since Tasmania joined the competition in 1977–78—does appear hopeless.
In his first Shield encounter since October, the erratic Connolly is looking to spark something in WA. “Always love coming back to play for WA,” he said Friday to reporters. “To be honest, I haven’t played many Shield games, but I’m excited to see the boys once more.
“Just playing some cricket back at home will be nice and hopefully some results go our way and we can play a Shield final.”
After making a memorable first-class debut with a score of 90 in the previous season’s final, Connolly, 21, began the Shield season with consecutive half-centuries against Tasmania and Queensland before a frantic period occurred.
Before breaking his hand in an ODI match against Pakistan in Perth after being hit by fast bowler Mohammad Hasnain, he participated in an Australia A match against India A. Connolly recovered in time for the BBL, when he played a key part for the Perth Scorchers and shared the player of the tournament award with Glenn Maxwell, a player who has been compared to Connolly’s x-factor.
Connolly made his debut in the second Test after being selected ahead of Maxwell for the Sri Lanka tour thanks to his BBL performance. Connolly had a difficult start after losing his wicket on four balls while batting at number eight, and his left-arm spin was unproductive, as he only bowled five overs in two innings. He had only played four first-class matches.
Connolly, however, relished the experience and the chance to pick up tips from his teammates, particularly substitute captain Steven Smith. “Just taking in his knowledge and seeing what I guess worked for me,” he stated. “I just embraced it, had fun, and learned as much as I could.
“I didn’t think his Test debut was particularly surprising. I believed that I deserved to play if I was going to. Overall, my trip to Sri Lanka was fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Connolly returned to the limelight a month later when he took Matthew Short’s place in the semi-final match against India in Dubai due to his injury. Connolly had only opened once in List A cricket and had only played three ODIs prior, so it was a risky move.
