5 Australian players making their first trip to India

Australian cricket has never been short of talented youngsters who are more than capable of making a mark on the big stage. The well-oiled domestic cricketing framework ensures availability of fresh talent who can replace an erstwhile big name and replicate a similar impact on the field.

21-year-old Matt Renshaw is a classic example of a player who made his presence felt against an opposition of the stature of team India in the recent Test-series amidst the likes of David Warner and Steve Smith. The current Australian ODI and the T20I squads also boast of a few young players who can go on to emerge as match-winners against India and in future International clashes. Let’s take a look at 5 such new entrants in the Australian squad:

Hilton Cartwright

The Harare-born 25-year-old batting all-rounder has already cemented a reputation of being a hard-hitting swashbuckling batsman who can chase down a huge target single-handedly and emerge as a matchwinner for his side.

Cartwright’s sublime performances with the bat and effective bowling performances for Western Australia resulted in his emergence to the spotlight with a Test debut against Pakistan in 2016. The right-handed batsman enjoys the temperament and ability to score big which will certainly tempt captain Steve Smith to hand him an opportunity in the series.

Tim Paine (T20I)

Paine who operates in the role of a wicketkeeper-batsman and was recently a part of the World XI against Pakistan initially failed to earn opportunities on the international stage because of the presence of Brad Haddin in the same role. However, the 32-year-old has certainly grabbed his opportunity post Haddin’s retirement after scoring 1611 runs in 76 T20 matches at a strike rate of 123.16.

Paine enjoys the ability to adapt to any scenario with the willow and is also more than efficient with the gloves which makes his selection in the T20I squad a no-brainer

Peter Handscomb

The 26-year-old batsman who is more than capable of battling spin has been called up as a replacement for Australian opener Aaron Finch. This certainly seems like a shrewd decision considering his exceptional first-class run tally of 5167 runs in 82 matches at an average of 41.00.

Handscomb emerged as the first player to not have been dismissed for a score less than 50 in the first seven Test innings and will be eager to make a mark in the ODI format also against India.

Kane Richardson

The 26-year-old fast bowler is highly rated because of his ability to bowl with pace and aggression. Richardson has been extremely successful in the shorter formats of the game and has been a part of IPL while representing the Royal Challengers Bangalore. The Aussie bowler further enjoys the ability to bowl a fine yorker which can bamboozle any batsman. He will be expected to replicate similar performances for the Australian ODI team.

Jason Behrendroff (T20I)

The left-arm fast bowler who enjoys the ability to swing the ball and generate movement with pace has earned comparisons to one of Australia’s greats, pacer Mitchell Johnson with many hailing him as his successor in Australian cricket. 40 wickets in the 2013-14 Sheffield Shield at an average of 22.70 certainly adds weight to these comparisons.

Behrendroff will be eager to inflict as much as damage as possible against the Indian batsmen if handed an opportunity.