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“Massive futures”: Peake excited by Aussie U19 teammates
Lachlan Geleit • January 19th, 2026 3:00 pm
Can Ollie Peake lead Australia to glory again at the Under-19 Cricket World Cup?
The 19-year-old left-hander was a key part of the side that won the 2024 edition of the tournament after coming in at just 17 as a late injury replacement, making 46 not out in the final.
This time around, he leads as captain with the side hunting Australia’s first-ever back-to-back titles in the competition’s history.
Already making the jump to professional men’s cricket with starring performances for Victoria and the Melbourne Renegades, Peake is clearly the senior player of the side this time around.
While he had to leave the BBL to head over to Namibia for the tournament, Peake says it was never a question for him, as Australia always comes first.
“It definitely is a massive honour and something that's really important to the Australian cricket pathway, I think,” Peake told SEN Mornings.
“I spoke to Graham Manou about it a couple of weeks before coming over, and said that he saw Shubman Gill play in the Under-19 World Cup, and then a couple of months later, he was playing for India in the Test side.
“From my point of view, there were never any questions whether I was coming over or not.
“I know that was vocalised a little bit, but it was something that I was really excited to do, to come over and lead and hopefully go back-to-back.”
That 2024 side has already made a big impact on the professional scene, with the likes of Sam Konstas, Harry Dixon, Hugh Weibgen, Mahli Beardman, Tom Straker, Callum Vidler and Peake himself making big waves in Aussie cricket.
So, can Peake see the 2026 group emulating what that side did both at the World Cup and beyond?
“It does feel pretty similar in the aspect that everyone is really hardworking and very talented,” Peake said.
“To see guys like Nitesh Samuel (77 not out) and Steve Hogan (115 not out) put on a great partnership in game one against Ireland was great to see.
“I've known Steve for probably 18 months now, and I couldn't have been happier for him to get that 100 and start the tournament off well.
“Then guys like Charlie Lachmund and Will Malajczuk, I think, have massive futures ahead of them, and I think it's only a matter of time until they're onto the professional cricket circle.”
After beating Ireland by eight wickets in their first game, the Aussies next face Japan on Tuesday evening (AEDT) in game two.
