Australia have announced their squad for the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against India and the following Ashes series to be played in England. All-rounder Mitchell Marsh, Marcus Harris and Josh Inglis have been recalled to the Test side while Peter Handscomb has been left out despite a productive India tour recently. Meanwhile, Harris pipped Cameron Bancroft as the back-up opener despite the latter smashing 945 runs in the Sheffield Shield season this year. On the other hand, Harris scored 601 runs too but is too much behind Bancroft in terms of numbers.
The pressure was on David Warner after a poor India series but he has been retained for now but Harris' selection in the squad will keep on his toes to perform consistently. Mitchell Marsh is set to make his comeback in the format for the first time since 2019 Ashes series. He is currently playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) but has played only one first-class game since recovering from injury. Todd Murphy has been selected as the second spinner as a back up to veteran Nathan Lyon. Meanwhile, Cricket Australia selector George Bailey has stated that the squad will be revisited ahead of the second Ashes Test.
"The World Test Championship is the culmination of more than two years of consistent performance at Test level by the team and the individuals involved, leading into an Ashes series which is always highly anticipated. Marcus Josh and Mitch return to the squad and will provide valuable depth and flexibility within their respective skillsets. We see value in revisiting the squad following the second Ashes Test given the short turnaround between the WTC Final and the first Ashes Test, along with the length of the tour," Bailey said.
The squad will be trimmed to 15 members for the WTC Final according to the ICC rules even as Australia will depart for UK in the last week of May. The WTC Final between India and Australia is slated to start on June 7 while the first Ashes Test will commence on June 20.
Australia squad for WTC Final and Ashes: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Todd Murphy, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David Warner.
