SWEPSON TO LEAD BULLS | One Day Cup Squads Named

Swepson will take on the captaincy this season in the absence of Marnus Labuschagne while he is on national duties with the Australian ODI squad in England. The 30-year-old has been in the leadership groups of Queensland and the Brisbane Heat in recent seasons and led his Queensland Premier Cricket club Sandgate-Redcliffe to the Final of the KFC T20 Max competition earlier this month.

In a neat historical twist, the last leg-spinner to captain Queensland was former Test spinner and national selector Trevor Hohns, who also hailed from the Sandgate-Redcliffe club.

Swepson will deputise as Bulls skipper when Labuschagne, who took over as State captain from Usman Khawaja in the off-season, is absent with the Australian team.

Khawaja is unavailable for Wednesday’s match against Tasmania but has been named for Friday’s clash with Victoria, with both games at the CitiPower Centre in Melbourne.

The Bulls squad includes two potential debutants, with ex-NSW left-hander Lachlan Hearne and Australian Under-19 World Cup winning pace bowler Tom Straker included in the wake of strong pre-season performances.

Straker picked up 6-28 in a one-day practice game against South Australia as well as playing a leading role for Valley in their KFC T20 Max championship title campaign. Straker, 19, joined Queensland from NSW in the off-season and received a rookie player contract. His signing reunited the right-arm paceman with Australian Under-19 teammates Hugh Weibgen, Callum Vidler and Lachy Aitken in the Bulls squad and Tom Campbell in the QC Academy squad.

Hearne, 23, previously played first class and List A cricket with the Blues but relocated to Brisbane last year and earned a Bulls player contract this season after being a Brisbane Heat replacement player last summer. He and Straker were in action for Queensland in their Toyota 2nd XI match loss to South Australia last week. Hearne hit 81 in the first innings, continuing a run of six innings in the past three weeks across the KFC T20 Max, Bulls practice games and 2nd XI match where he scored 50 or more.

Gold Coast batter Hugo Burdon, who made his List A debut for Queensland last season, and Wests paceman Tom Whitney, who played a one-dayer for the Bulls in 2022-23, have also been included in the squad.

Players not considered for selection as they manage their returns from injury included Hugh Weibgen (finger), Jem Ryan (hamstring), Callum Vidler (groin), Gurinder Sandhu (calf) and Xavier Bartlett (side)  

Domestic One-Day Cup

Queensland v Tasmania & Victoria

v Tasmania, Wednesday

v Victoria, Friday

CitiPower Centre, Melbourne,

4. Mitch Swepson (c)

17. Max Bryant

29. Hugo Burdon

21. Jack Clayton

22. Lachlan Hearne

18. Usman Khawaja (v Vic only)

43. Ben McDermott (wk)

20. Michael Neser

77. Matthew Renshaw

16. Mark Steketee

45. Tom Straker

31. Tom Whitney

24. Jack Wildermuth

Matches will be streamed on KAYO and cricket.com.au with both Bulls games underway from 10am.