Tasmanian coach Dan Marsh expects the Tigers’ new-look spin twins to do some damage in the Matador Cup.
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Xavier Doherty and recruit Cam Boyce have both been included in the 14-man squad for the tournament, which will be played in Western Australia, Queensland and New South Wales.
Marsh believed the left-arm orthodox bowler and his leg-spinning mate would work well in tandem.
“What we have to remember with those guys is that they are very good cricketers and they have adapted (previously) in any conditions,’’ he said.
“So if it is a flat wicket, a spinning wicket or a seaming wicket, those guys have had success on them, and that’s why we are really excited about the balance of our squad.”
Five of those selected will be looking for their Tasmanian white ball debut in Boyce, Simon Milenko, Ben McDermott, Cameron Stevenson and Beau Webster.
“We have a different sort of look this year. Getting Boyce in as a leg-spinner is really exciting and our young batsmen in (Jake) Doran, McDermott and Webster have got some good cricket under their belts in the last 12 months,’’ Marsh said.
Marsh’s leadership squad for the summer has also been named, with George Bailey again the man in charge. Tim Paine, Jackson Bird, Xavier Doherty and Alex Doolan will be his co-vice captains.
With Bailey absent due to international duty, Paine will be in charge for the tournament, with the skipper looking for strong returns.
“White ball cricket has been going pretty well for me for a number of years now and I feel like I’ve had a big focus through my pre-season of trying to improve again,’’ Paine said.
“The way I played spin, I think I had some issues with that last year, so most of it is about being a lot more attacking and going back to the way that I used to bat, which was backing myself, at times showing a bit of flare, and enjoying batting.”
Joining Bailey on the absentee list will be all-rounder James Faulkner, who has missed the trip to South Africa due to a calf injury. But he may be available for the latter stages of the cup.
They will open their tournament on October 3 against Queensland at the Allan Border Field.
TASMANIAN SQUAD: Tim Paine (c), Xavier Doherty (vc), Ben Dunk, Dominic Michael, Alex Doolan, Jake Doran, Ben McDermott, Beau Webster, Simon Milenko, Hamish Kingston, Cameron Stevenson, Jackson Bird, Andrew Fekete, Cameron Boyce.