Victoria name squad to face Western Australia

Opening batsman Travis Dean will captain the side for the first time while Peter Handscomb is on Test duty in Adelaide.

Fast bowler Chris Tremain will return to Melbourne and line up for Victoria having been released from the Test squad.

Young batsman Will Pucovski has also been named in the squad for the first time since taking an indefinite break from competitive cricket.

Nic Maddinson is also in line to make his Victorian First-Class debut after impressive performances in the Toyota Futures League, including a knock of 150.

Cameron White also returns to the squad ahead of what will be Victoria’s final Sheffield Shield match at the MCG for the season, with the remaining two home fixtures following the BBL season to be played at the CitiPower Centre, Junction Oval.

Cricket Victoria Chairman of Selectors Andrew Lynch said:

“We’re delighted to see Aaron Finch, Marcus Harris and Peter Handscomb lining up for Australia today. They’ve performed for Victoria for a long time, and deserve their opportunities to represent their country on home soil.

“Those three are obviously big losses to our batting stocks, but we have the depth in our squad, so we’re confident we can fill those gaps.

“Nic Maddinson gets an opportunity to play his first shield game for Victoria. His 150 run knock last week against Tasmania was exactly what we wanted to see, and we hope to see Nic continue that form into this match.”

Cricket Victoria’s Dr Trefor James welcomed the return to play for Will Pucovski.

“Will has progressed well in recent weeks, both in his training with the squad and through club cricket. The medical and coaching staff, together with Will, believe now is the right time to return,” Dr James said.

Victoria play Western Australia at the MCG from Friday, December 7 at 10:30am AEDT. The match will be live streamed on cricket.com.au with commentary.

Victorian Squad v Western Australia
Scott Boland
Travis Dean (c)
Andrew Fekete
Seb Gotch
Jon Holland
Nic Maddinson
Glenn Maxwell
James Pattinson
Will Pucovski
Matt Short
Chris Tremain
Cameron White