Sun sets on Winter with loss of SA contract

Nick Winter, the left-arm swing bowler who was touted as a smoky for Australia's previous Ashes tour to the UK in 2019, is searching for a new cricket home after being told his South Australia contract won't be renewed.

Winter is one three de-listings announced by the Redbacks today, along with opener Bailey Capel who played one Marsh Sheffield Game for SA last summer and uncapped batter Ryan King.

It ends Winter's decade-long stint with his adopted state after being recruited from Canberra as an untried teenager who became renowned for swinging the England-manufactured Dukes ball.

It led some, including current Redbacks coach Jason Gillespie, to suggest Winter would be well suited to UK conditions.

Those calls came after the 2017-18 summer which Winter ended as SA's equal-leading wicket-taker alongside Daniel Worrall with 34 wickets at the remarkable average of 19.71 when the Dukes balls were used for half the Shield season.

He had previously been cut from the Redbacks and Adelaide Strikers lists in 2016 when rarely able to get on the park due to injury.

The 29-year-old played 22 first-class games and eight one-dayers for SA following his debut in the 50-over competition in 2014, and finished with a total of 84 wickets across both formats.

Having waited a further three years to earn selection in SA's red-ball outfit, Winter made an extraordinary start to his first-class tenure by returning four five-wicket hauls in as many Shield appearances.

Only Australia Test legends Charles 'Terror' Turner (six) and Clarrie Grimmett (five) can claim to have collected more five-fors at the same nascent stage of their respective careers.

Winter, who completed a degree in international studies and politics at Adelaide University and served as an SA delegate with the Australian Cricketers Association, has also spent time on the playing roster with Adelaide Strikers, Hobart Hurricanes, Sydney Sixers and Melbourne Renegades.

His most recent appearance at interstate level was SA's Shield match against Tasmania at Hobart in November 2021, when he finished with 1-50 from his only bowling innings in a rain-ruined match.

Capel, who won his first rookie contract in 2021-22 and another this season, played in the Redbacks' final Shield match against New South Wales last summer where he scored one and eight in SA's breakthrough five-wicket win.

King also held rookie deals for the past two summers but without making a senior appearance.

The 21-year-old earned his contracts on the back of some strong batting performances in under-19s and Premier Cricket competitions.

But he also gained attention for his leg spin bowling when attending the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane, and was found to impart the second-highest rate of revolutions on a ball of any bowler to be tested behind Australia's greatest spinner, the late Shane Warne.

"Nick, Bailey and Ryan have all been great members of our squad and we are extremely grateful for their service to South Australian cricket," SACA General Manager of Cricket Tim Nielsen said in announcing the contract list changes.

"While on-field performance is of course the ultimate measure for our players and staff, what each individual brings to the team environment is also vital and Nick, Bailey and Ryan have contributed positively during their time at the state level.

"This is always a tough time of year with the playing list undergoing changes, but we are excited about where our squad is placed and look forward to further reinforcing it in the coming months."