Cameron Bancroft and Joe Burns finally get back to Australia’s Test squad to face Pakistan, with Usman Khawaja and Marcus Harris being dropped for their flop show during the Ashes series against England. Bowling allrounder Michael Neser has joined the formidable pace attack of Josh Hazelwood, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson.
Bancroft is one of three specialist openers, along with Burns and David Warner, but is more likely to play down the order if selected for the two Tests starting in Brisbane next week, followed by a day-night clash in Adelaide. National selector Trevor Hohns suggested he would open with Warner, pointing out that “he has Test hundreds on the board and has combined very well with David in the past”.
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Harris and Khawaja miss out after failing to impress in England or in Australia A match, which was seen as a “bat-off” for the Test slots up for grabs. He further added, “As always there were players who were unlucky to miss the squad. Those players remain firmly in the national selection frame and will continue to be monitored closely.”
Middle-order batsman Travis Head has got another chance as the young prodigy Will Pucovski, widely tipped to be included, pulled out of contention earlier Thursday citing his “mental wellbeing”. Pucovski has a history of mental health battles.
Following that double century, Pucovski took a long break and later told reporters: “It was one of those things where what it looked like from the outside wasn’t quite matching up with what it was on the inside I was more confused than at any other time in my life.”
Pucovski is the third Australian Test aspirant in recent weeks to take time away from cricket to tackle mental health issues, with Maddinson and Glenn Maxwell also both currently out of action.
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Hohns said Neser was included due to “his ability move the ball both ways, giving the team another bowling option depending on the conditions”. He added, “We are blessed to have four of the best fast bowlers in the world challenging each other for spots and most importantly playing as a group.”
Australia Test squad: Tim Paine (capt/wk), Cameron Bancroft, Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner
