Adam Zampa has ruled himself out of New South Wales’ One-Day Cup final against Tasmania, clearing the path for fellow leg-spinner Tanveer Sangha to keep his spot. The right-arm wrist-spinner is the tournament’s leading wicket-taker and, in truth, the side was unlikely to field two leggies on what is usually a seamer-friendly Bellerive Oval deck.
With Australia’s early departure from the T20 World Cup and the domestic final pushed back to avoid a clash with the women’s India series, several white-ball internationals suddenly found gaps in their calendars. Zampa fancied the chance to play, yet a brief chat with NSW management settled things.
“The starting position was Adam was available to play and keen to play,” Greg Mail, the state’s chief performance officer, said. “He and I had a conversation and he always is cognisant of the impact on Tanveer when he is available for us.
“He was quite clear that with Tanveer being the leading wicket-taker in the competition and also still developing his craft that he didn’t want his selection or availability to come at Tanveer’s expense. And that’s a position that we agreed with as well.”
Once the coaching staff decided a day-night final in Hobart was not the moment for twin leg-spinners—NSW have tried the pairing before but in different conditions—Zampa stepped aside. He has appeared only once for the Blues this season, incidentally also alongside Sangha against the Tigers.
The timing looks ideal for Sangha, who has 18 wickets at 18.05 and is pushing hard for more regular national honours after 11 limited-overs caps. NSW will still be reinforced: pace duo Sean Abbott and Ben Dwarshuis return, providing fresh ball swing and useful lower-order runs. Skipper Jack Edwards remains out with a hamstring strain, so Kurtis Patterson keeps the armband.
Tasmania, unbeaten through their first five matches to secure hosting rights, expect Nathan Ellis to lead the attack with Matt Kuhnemann’s left-arm spin offering variety. Both squads are eyeing the Dean Jones Trophy, postponed from 28 February so the ground could stage Australia women’s ODIs on 27 Feb and 1 March.
For context, Bellerive often offers assistance under lights—think fresh grass and a bit of nip—so neither camp is keen to overload on spin. “The question then became, is a Bellerive day-night fixture the right time to play two leggies? … When we decided that that wasn’t the case, then Zamps has effectively stepped aside to make sure Tanveer could play,” Mail added.
It is a pragmatic, respectful call. Zampa remains Australia’s senior white-ball spinner, yet he recognises a 22-year-old team-mate gaining another high-pressure outing may be worth more long-term.
New South Wales squad
Kurtis Patterson (capt), Sean Abbott, Joel Davies, Ben Dwarshuis, Matthew Gilkes, Chris Green, Ryan Hadley, Liam Hatcher, Sam Konstas, Josh Philippe, William Salzmann, Lachlan Shaw, Tanveer Sangha
Title at stake: the Dean Jones Trophy, Thursday night, Hobart.
