Tigers eager to pin down dynamic duo
TASMANIA will not be letting rising stars Nathan Ellis and Mac Wright from its grip as crucial list management decisions are finalised in the next fortnight.
Ellis, 25, finished the Sheffield Shield season in irresistible form, claiming 18 scalps at 16.7 to stamp his credentials as a star in the making following a breakout Big Bash campaign.
Twenty-two-year-old Wright — who flashed his wares in the Big Bash with some telling knocks — too is considered a building block for the side over the next decade.
Tigers’ high performance general manager Simon Insley said keeping the duo in place for the long haul was a priority.
“The development of Mac Wright and Nathan Ellis really show that we’re in a healthy position to build upon for next season,” Insley said.
“That’s part of our list management where we want to develop our own and create Australian cricketers.
“So part of that is knowing which talent we’ve got and trying to lock that down as quickly as possible.”
Insley said the eye-catching form of the Tigers’ younger stars was not a concern as other states may swoop.
“It’s only a positive. The great thing that our high-performance environment gives the players is that they want to be a part of (it) here and they see that they’re improving within Cricket Tasmania.
“It makes it easier to keep players because they know they’re going to improve here.”
The Tigers’ season is over after the Sheffield Shield season was terminated over the weekend due to coronavirus precautions.
Tigers players will conduct their end-of-season reviews and interviews over Facetime or Skype on the advice of team doctors.
Insley did not rule out looking to the mainland to add talent to the squad and said final list decisions would be made within a fortnight.
“You can only contract a certain number of cricketers so those conversations will always be going on but that’s professional sport. You can’t contract everyone,” Insley said.
“We’ll look at what we’ve got first and foremost but if there’s a cherry on top we’ll look into it.”
THE DEVELOPMENT OF MAC WRIGHT AND NATHAN ELLIS REALLY SHOW THAT WE’RE IN A HEALTHY POSITION TO BUILD UPON FOR NEXT SEASON TIGERS HIGH PERFORMANCE GENERAL MANAGER SIMON INSLEY