Like how the Darwin Test will be somewhat of a homecoming for Aussie opener Jake Weatherald, the preceding Cricket Australia XI game serves as a similar stage for emerging fast bowler Tom Menzies.
While the 20-year-old has only recently moved away to pursue higher honours, his rise has already included a pair of second XI appearances for South Australia as well as a recent training camp in Chennai as part of the Adelaide Strikers’ academy program.
Now he’s set for his toughest test yet, with the three-day tour match against Bangladesh that began today at Marrara Cricket Ground a chance to mix it with an international opponent and provide another example for aspiring Northern Territory cricketers that there is a pathway to the top level.
Menzies follows in the footsteps of fellow Darwin natives Weatherald and Tom Andrews, progressing through club and representative underage cricket in the NT before realising further opportunities in South Australia.
The right-armer captained the Territory’s under-17 and -19 teams, and his performances earned him a spot on Australia’s U19 tour of England in 2023, where he twice dismissed highly touted English and Durham opener Ben McKinney. He was the first NT cricketer selected in an Australian men’s U19 team since Tom Andrews in 2014.
While Menzies admits the chance to play against a Test team in his hometown won’t truly sink in until he’s running in to deliver his first ball, he’s quick to recognise the opportunity that’s in front of him.
“Playing alongside guys I’ve watched growing up in the Big Bash is going to be a great experience,” he told cricket.com.au. “Kurtis Patterson (named captain of the CA XI) and Josh Philippe; my younger brothers and I used to try and bat like them in the backyard, and now I’m going to be playing with them.
“Seeing (Weatherald play for Australia) was definitely a huge inspiration for me and shows that someone from Darwin can make it if you work hard enough.
“All those boys – D’Arcy Short, Kane Richardson, Tom Andrews and Jake Weatherald – I’ve had the opportunity to play with them for the NT Strike team in the Top End T20 tournament. I think NT Cricket has been really good at exposing their young talent … and without them, I don’t think I would have had that exposure, especially in those underage tournaments.”
Menzies’ bond with Weatherald runs deeper than NT Cricket, with their families striking up a friendship over their shared love of fishing.
The Menzies family have their own fishing YouTube channel ‘Territory Boys’ and dad Braden was a fishing guide who linked up with Weatherald during a playing stint with their local Darwin Cricket Club last year, just months before he broke into the Test side for the Ashes.
Braden Menzies was recently part of a Cricket Australia promotional video for the Darwin Test alongside Weatherald that showcased the best of what the Top End has to offer. He’s also understood to be taking a few of the Aussie players on a fishing trip in the lead up to the first Test against Bangladesh.
“My little brother Max was playing in that team with Weatherald, so he hooked him up with our dad to go fishing and they’ve been on a few trips since,” Menzies said.
That friendship has also extended to the training track following Weatherald’s domestic return to SA after three seasons with Tasmania.
“We’re lucky enough to train in and around (the senior squad) with the academy and he’s always willing to have a chat,” Menzies said.
“Coming from Darwin and seeing someone like him grow up and go through the pathways down south and get to where he is now, especially a bit later in his career after he’s done a lot of hard work and had different setbacks, it’s pretty inspiring for me.
“And training with him, (Alex) Carey’s there sometimes too, watching those boys train and seeing their professionalism, it’s definitely eye-opening.
“Your margin for error is so much less than playing a grade cricket game. If you bowl just a few centimetres too wide, especially into Weatherald as a lefty, he’ll put you away for four through the covers. So that’s probably the main thing as a bowler.
“Jake’s very willing to talk to anyone and he’s very open, especially to us in Darwin and he was nice enough to spend some time with my little brother too.”
Despite having moved to the South Australian capital in 2023, where he now plays Premier Cricket with Adelaide University and also studies law and commerce, Darwin’s competitions remain an important part of Menzies’ schedule.
He returns every winter and has already played one game there this dry season, hitting a 77-ball 85 not out as a specialist batter in a B Grade match.
He’s also featured for NT Strike in all four Top End T20 tournaments, leading the side’s wickets tally in 2025 with 12 from six matches. It highlights how he believes he’s “learnt the most out of my game the past two seasons” since joining the Strikers academy where the perks this preseason have included training alongside SA’s star quicks Brendan Doggett, Henry Thornton, Wes Agar and head coach Ryan Harris.
Those sessions, as well as the step up to representative red-ball cricket with the SA Second XI and now CA XI, has turned Menzies’ focus to building a body that’s more robust for four-day cricket.
“I’ve always been lucky enough to be able to swing and move the ball naturally; now can I find a bit more airspeed and be able to keep that airspeed for longer,” he said.
“(This season) I’ll be trying to play a few more (state) second XI games and get that exposure and the CA XI game will be really good for that.
“From there, just try and take some wickets and see where the wickets take me.”
CA XI squad v Bangladesh: Kurtis Patterson (c) (NSW), Campbell Kellaway (Victoria), Campbell Thompson (SA), Corey Rocchiccioli (WA), Hanno Jacobs (SA), Jake Doran (Tasmania), Jerrssis Wadia (SA), Josh Philippe (NSW), Sam Konstas (NSW), Teague Wyllie (Tasmania), Tom Menzies (SA), Jack Clayton* (QLD), Xavier Crone (Victoria)
* Clayton was a late replacement for Tom Rogers, who picked up a Lanka Premier League deal
Bangladesh tour of Australia
Warm-up match v Cricket Australia XI, August 6-8, Marrara Cricket Ground, Darwin, 10am (local)
First Test: August 13-17, Marrara Stadium, Darwin, 10am (local)
Second Test: August 22-26, Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay, 10am (local)
