New Delhi, Sep 3 (IANS) India-born Australian cricketer Nikhil Chaudhary has set his sights on the upcoming ODI World Cup as he aims to make his ODI debut for Australia.
Chaudhary, who hails from Delhi, is the first India-born male cricketer to represent Australia in the past six decades, having made his T20I debut in June against Bangladesh. The spin all-rounder will be in action soon for Australia A against India A in an unofficial one-day series and is eyeing an Australia ODI cap and the 2027 World Cup in future.
“I want to play 50-over cricket and, if I get a chance, Tests too,” Chaudhary said as quoted by Cricinfo. “My first target is the 2027 ODI World Cup, and then the T20 World Cup the following year. I want to represent Australia for as long as I can.”
Chaudhary settled in Australia after being stranded there because of COVID. Having made his List A and T20 debuts for Punjab, he pursued his cricket career in Australia and has now been playing across domestic formats Down Under.
The all-rounder made his T20I debut in Bangladesh, where he played in three T20Is and took three wickets in limited opportunities. On not being able to play for India and instead plying his trade for Australia, Chaudhary sounded more practical, saying that all he wants is to play cricket.
“It doesn’t really matter to me because I just wanted to play cricket. If you see, most players never get to represent their country. They finish their careers playing domestic cricket. Some move to another country to play club cricket. So, if you love cricket, you just want to play cricket; it doesn’t matter for whom,” he added.
Chaudhary has played across all formats in the domestic circuit and has also been a regular in franchise cricket. The all-rounder made his BBL debut in 2023 for Hobart Hurricanes and his first-class debut in 2025 for Tasmania.
He performed well in the Sheffield Shield 2025-26, scoring 393 runs in 13 innings. He scored an unbeaten 76 on his FC debut and also made 163 against New South Wales. He now looks to build on that success.
“My plan has always been the same: work hard, give your best, and try to make your team win. Whatever opportunity you get, you try to perform,” he said.
–IANS
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