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Star Batter Snubbed, Tim Nielsen Returns To Coach Australia U19 Vs India

Akshita Patel

Tim Nielsen back as coach for Australia's youth team [Source: @StrikersCentral/X.com]Tim Nielsen back as coach for Australia's youth team [Source: @StrikersCentral/X.com]

Former Australia men’s cricket coach Tim Nielsen is back in the national setup, this time to guide the country’s U19 team in a high-profile home series against India. But there’s a twist, rising star Oliver Peake won’t be part of it.

Cricket Australia announced a 15-player squad for the September-October series, which will feature three Youth ODIs and two Youth Tests. 

The ODIs will be played in Brisbane on September 21, 24, and 26, followed by the first Test starting September 30 at Ian Healy Oval. The second Test will be in Mackay from October 7.

Tim Nielsen Re-Hired In Coaching Set-Up By Cricket Australia

According to ESPN Cricinfo, Tim Nielsen has been appointed as head coach for the upcoming series between Australia U19 and India U19. Nielsen, now 57, previously coached Australia’s men’s team from 2007 to 2011 after serving as John Buchanan’s assistant. 

Since then, he’s held high-performance roles in domestic cricket and even worked with Pakistan as a red-ball coach in 2024 alongside long-time friend Jason Gillespie. 

He takes over from Lachlan Stevens, who resigned earlier this year, and will lead the team in their last bilateral series before the U19 World Cup in Zimbabwe and Namibia in January.

As for the squad, Oliver Peake, who made a century in that same series, will instead join the Australia A tour of India, after impressing in first-class cricket for Victoria and in Australia A’s recent games.

Only four players, Simon Budge, Steve Hogan, Hayden Schiller, and Alex Lee Young, remain from the squad that toured India last year, where they suffered heavy defeats in both Tests and ODIs. 

The series is highly significant, as the U19 World Cup is on the horizon. Hence, Australia will ensure its preparations are not lacking in any sense.

Australia Under-19 squad vs India

Simon Budge, Alex Turner, Steve Hogan, Will Malajczuk, Yash Deshmukh, Tom Hogan, Aryan Sharma, John James, Hayden Schiller, Charles Lachmund, Ben Gordon, Will Byrom, Kasey Barton, Alex Lee Young, Jayden Draper