Nathan McSweeney

A conservative batter in the middle order with a solid technique, Nathan McSweeney is being touted by some as the successor to Smith and Labuschagne in the Australian Test team. Hailing from Brisbane, McSweeney recognised his prowess for cricket early and was groomed mainly as a batter. He was part of the 2018 U19 World Cup where Australia managed to reach the final before being upstaged by India.

McSweeney originally played for his home state of Queensland in the Sheffield Shield, before switching to South Australia in 2021. In the Big Bash League, he originally represented Melbourne Renegades but was signed by Brisbane Heat in 2021 as a replacement player for Marnus Labuschagne. He eventually became Brisbane Heat captain in 2023. McSweeney has performed admirably in the domestic circuit, owing to which he got opportunities to captain the Australia A team and the Prime Ministers XI.

In November 2024, McSweeney was roped into the Australian squad and tasked with performing the role of an opener for the home series against India despite never having played that position in domestic cricket prior to that. He had a fairly tepid debut, being dismissed twice by star pacer Jasprit Bumrah.