There will be five Australian-based teams taking part in this year’s Study NT Top End T20 Series.
The tournament begins on Friday with the Victoria Academy taking on Hobart Hurricanes Academy, starting at 10am local time.
Take a read of how each of the Australian sides are shaping up below.
IN-FORM VIC PRIMED FOR HUGE TOURNAMENT
Sam Harper is set to be one of the most exciting prospects in the tournament after a standout Big Bash campaign last season where the wicketkeeper notched the third most runs in the competition. Harper has been busy playing around the world since the Big Bash, including in the Pakistan Super League for Quetta Gladiators and Lanka Premier League for Galle Gallants. He scored three half centuries for the Gallants. Another good tournament here and Harper is sure to finally get his maiden international call-up for Australia.
Campbell Kellaway will be another exciting player to watch. His name has come up in plenty of selection debates for the Test side. The 23-year-old, who has two domestic one-day centuries to his name, could strengthen his chances for an Aussie promotion with some big performances in the Top End T20 Series. Kellaway played 11 matches for the Melbourne Stars last season.
Having combined the Stars and Renegades to form a Victorian team this year, the Vics should be in for a promising campaign in Darwin under coach Ben Rohrer.
The Vics boast an exciting bowling attack featuring a number of talented fast bowlers, including some young guns. Selectors will have plenty to choose from with Sam Elliott set to lead the charge. Austin Anlezark and Harry Hoekstra will be the youngsters to watch. Then you got fast-bowling all-rounders, Will Sutherland and Brodie Symons, who should add some strong depth. Todd Murphy is sure to lead the spin pack with leg spinners Callum Stow and Michael Archer also great options. Young spinner, Aryan Sharma, 18, will also get some opportunity.
Victoria Academy begins its Top End Series with the tournament opener against Hobart Hurricanes Academy at TIO on Friday morning, starting at 10am local time.
After the Renegades and Stars academies narrowly missed finals last Top End T20 Series, the Vics will be raring for a finals birth in this campaign.
THE IPL QUICK IN HURRICANES TEAM
Billy Stanlake is sure to attract the eye of cricket fans once more when he takes the field in Darwin with the Hobart Hurricanes Academy. Stanlake has fantastic experience behind him, having played in the Indian Premier League for Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2017 and Sunrisers Hyderabad a year later. The fast bowler has also represented Australia in T20Is on 19 occasions. He has also played in eight ODIs. The 31-year-old took a career-best 4-8 against Pakistan in a T20I in Zimbabwe in 2018. Stanlake has also taken 58 wickets across 64 Big Bash matches, where he has featured for the Adelaide Strikers and Melbourne Stars before joining the Hurricanes in 2023.
Fellow fast bowlers Gabe Bell, Marcus Bean and Caelan Maladay are also sure to cause some havoc during the 10-day tournament. All-rounders Will Prestwidge and Brad Hope will be handy seam options with the ball as well. And younger fast bowlers Kasey Barton and Lachlan Clark will be exciting to see in action.
Tim Ward is set to be a top proposition with the bat after a strong maiden BBL campaign last season where he notched a brilliant half century of 90 off 47 balls against Sydney Thunder. The 28-year-old played 10 matches across the BBL season and could be in for a stellar Top End T20 Series.
Teague Wyllie and Jake Doran could also be in for some strong performances after the pair both performed strongly for the CA XI against Bangladesh earlier this month.Wyllie scored a sublime century of 130 and Doran, who batted with Wyllie for a strong partnership, notched a well-made 76.
Don’t forget to keep an eye on Nivethan Radhakrishnan, who can bowl left and right handed. He is sure to entertain.
The Hurricanes Academy face the Victoria Academy on Friday to kick off their campaign and the tournament, before taking on Bangladesh on Sunday.
SIX SIX SIX, CAN WADIA DO IT AGAIN FOR STRIKERS
Yes, that’s right. In just his second Big Bash game, Adelaide Strikers all-rounder Jerrssis Wadia hit three maximums from his first three balls. The Indian-born star shocked the internet with his incredible feat. Now he is set to feature for the Adelaide Strikers Academy in the 10-day Study NT Top End Series, which starts on Friday. Wadia was only just in Darwin for the Cricket Australia XI warm up game against Bangladesh ahead of the first Test. The trip is set to give the pure all-rounder the upper hand as he makes his return to try and lift the Strikers to glory. Wadia played in the SA U19 team after moving to Australia as a 17-year-old.
The Strikers are stacked with a strong line-up that includes Henry Thornton and Tom Kelly as the other two contracted Strikers players alongside Wadia. Led by coach John Palmer, the Strikers also have several other quality players that could lift them to a second Top End title in three years. The South Australian team won the tournament in 2024 with a thrilling 32-run victory over Bangladesh A.
The batting is sure to do the job with stability right through the list. Henry Hunt and Jason Sangha are all but locked in to provide a great backbone. Kelly, Lachlan Bangs, Ryan King and Wadia will have no shortage of firepower behind them. Harry Nielsen will be handy with his ability to score 360 degrees. And Connor Carroll has tons of runs under his belt in Darwin, playing for local clubs, Nightcliff and Tracy Village, over the last few seasons.
A fast bowling trio of Henry Thornton, Jordan Buckingham and Tim Oakley could be hard to stop alongside all-rounder Bangs as well. Add in young gun Aubrey Stockdale and spinner Waheguru Dhillon and the bowling brigade appears superb.
STAR LEGGIE BRUNKER SET FOR ACT GLORY
ACT has a number of players coming off incredible seasons in its premier cricket competition. Leg spinner Kai Brunker is primed for success in the Top End after a stellar ACT premier cricket campaign where he took an unprecedented 59 wickets. It was by far the most wickets taken by a player in the competition. The Queanbeyan talent also scored 387 runs, making him a great allround option for captain Nic Broes this Top End T20 Series. The Darwin conditions could also provide extra support for Brunker. Brunker not only took plenty of wickets but had a bowling average of 16.8 to cap things off.
Batter Nick Allen will be an exciting prospect after scoring a league-high 1072 runs last season. He averaged 45 in a remarkable campaign for Ginninderra. Tyler Van Luin will also be another player to look out for after scoring three centuries in four innings last season for Queanbeyan. If the left hander hits that type form in Darwin, he could be in for a stellar campaign. Van Luin also brought up 200 ACT premier cricket games last season in another impressive feat.
Esam Rahman will be another exciting Comet to watch as he comes with international experience having played for Japan. He showed some excellent power hitting for the Japan side and also did a superb job for Queanbeyan last season, taking 18 wickets and scoring 510 runs. All-rounder Tom Hogan is coming off an Australia Under-19s World Cup, while batter Zac Keogh has been selected for the SACA Pathway Academy for the upcoming season. The pair should add some strength to this ACT outfit, who registered a convincing seven-wicket win over the Melbourne Stars last year. ACT chased down 160 in that game with 13 balls to spare.
NT STRIKE
Former South African captain Johan Botha will take charge of the NT Strike this season as head coach. Read more about Botha and his Northern Territory team here: https://www.ntcricket.com.au/news/4562263/short-returns-to-captain-nt-strike-as-2026-squad-announced
The tournament is already underway! See the latest results here