Owen's 'under the radar' role a boost for Tassie Shield hopes

Mitch Owen's rapid rise to Australia and T20 franchise star has helped to fast track the development of his bowling, an added boost for Tasmania as they prepare to be without Beau Webster for periods of the Sheffield Shield season.

Webster will likely only be available for the first three or four Shield rounds ahead of the Ashes, and his bowling loads could also be closely monitored to keep him fresh to face England, meaning more responsibility could fall on Owen with the ball this summer.

Tassie skipper Jordan Silk said the 23-year-old allrounder's performances with the ball had gone "under the radar" during a winter spent crisscrossing the globe following his breakthrough Big Bash campaign with Hobart Hurricanes.

After a stint with Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League and an Indian Premier League debut with Ricky Ponting's Punjab Kings, Owen was crowned player of the tournament during the Ponting-coached Washington Freedom's run to the Major League Cricket final in the United States.

While his destructiveness with the bat was on full display for his 313 runs at a strike rate of almost 200, it was as much the contributions from his seamers (14 wickets in 12 games) that helped him take out the league's top individual award.

He then bowled crucial overs during his debut T20 international series in the Caribbean, breaking significant partnerships on two occasions while playing every game of Australia's 5-0 demolition of West Indies.

Owen was used sparingly with the ball last home summer, sending down nine overs for the Hurricanes in BBL|14 and fewer than eight overs on average per innings for the Tigers in the Sheffield Shield.

"Mitch has had a great winter, whether it be in the MLC or debuting for Australia," Silk told reporters on Friday.

"But the bowling piece is the one that's really surprised through all that and it's maybe gone a little bit under the radar how well he's performed with the ball.

"When Beau leaves, he leaves not just a huge batting hole for us but he's workmanlike with the ball. So having those options to come in and be able to play a similar role or give us a similar amount of overs to what Beau is able to do is hugely vital.

"That's not to discount other guys in out squad – we've had Brad Hope playing quite a bit for us in the past couple of years and Aiden O'Connor who burst (out) late last season.

"We've got options, not just Mitch, but there's guys that are pushing him as well for that spot, if and when it comes up."

Owen will miss Tasmania's Sheffield Shield opener against Queensland beginning on October 4 due to Australia's three T20 tour of New Zealand.

Tasmania at times played up to three seam-bowling allrounders in their red-ball side last season, with a combination of Owen, Hope and O'Connor occupying positions seven and eight behind Webster at No.6.

It's set to lead to some tough selection calls that Silk said they lacked last season due to injuries. But they'll have a full cohort of quicks to choose from to start the new campaign, including the state's most prolific bowler of all-time, Jackson Bird, who has returned to Hobart for family reasons after two years with NSW.

"Bringing someone like Jackson back into the group, he's gone away and performed really well for NSW the past few years, so we can't ignore that," Silk said.

"This year, I'm really excited by the fact that there will be some harder conversations around who we pick.

"I'm really confident that whoever's coming in … we're going to have a side that's absolutely competitive and can win every game."

Tasmania head north to Queensland's Fraser Coast region for two one-day practice games on Monday and Tuesday against a Bulls squad featuring Marnus Labuschagne as he fights to win back his Test spot for the Ashes.

Labuschagne is fresh off a 57-ball century on Tuesday for his Premier Cricket club Redlands in their T20 Max competition. He opened up to cricket.com.au this week about losing his confidence as his form dipped and detailed his plan to "train smarter" in his attempt to earn a Test recall.

Rising pace bowlers Callum Vidler and Tom Straker will also use the preseason games to prepare for Australia A's 50-over series in India at the end of the month.

"It's a bit of a whirlwind trip but good for the guys to be getting up there, outdoors and playing against a really competitive side," Silk said.

"We think that's really good preparation, along with a lot of the other stuff we've done this preseason, to give us the best chance heading into game one (of the Dean Jones Trophy on September 16) against NSW."