Matthew Short

Matthew Short made his mark as an under-19 player for Australia in the 2014 World Cup. He scored 237 from 6 games at an average of 39.50 and ended up as the second highest run-getter for his team behind Jake Doran.

A product of the Victorian Academy, Short made his first-class debut against the touring Kiwis in October 2015 in a three day game. But he has found it tough getting into the Victorian team for the Sheffield Shield competition.

Melbourne Renegades gave him a development rookie contract in 2013-2014 and the next season he turned up for them in two games. He was ignored for BBL 05 but again played a solitary game in BBL 06 against Sydney Sixers. After a few unimpactful seasons at the Renegades, Short made the move to the Adelaide Strikers in the 2018/19 season but it was only when he moved up to the top of the order to open the batting in 2021/22 that the world saw Short's real potential. He finished that as the third-highest run-scorer and struck the second most sixes. The following season saw Short strike his maiden BBL century in what was a record chase of 230 against the Hobart Hurricanes. His performance at the BBL that year saw him being named as the Player of the Tournament. Short was subsequently named the skipper of the Adelaide Strikers in 2023/24 and his form got even better.

Short's destructive batting coupled with his ability to bowl tidy off-spin and recent form did not go unnoticed. He was handed a T20I debut in a short series against South Africa in 2023 and an ODI debut followed in a series against India the next month.

By Kumar Abhisekh Das