BAN vs AUS: Riley Meredith ruled out of the five-match T20I series against Bangladesh

Australia received a big jolt ahead of the first match of the T20I series against Bangladesh as fast bowler Riley Meredith has been ruled of five-match series due to side strain as confirmed by Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday. Meredith made his international debut during the T20I series against West Indies picking up four wickets in two wickets but conceded runs at an economy of 13.40 in 7.5 overs he bowled.

Already with incumbent skipper, Aaron Finch ruled out due to knee injury, Meredith’s injury has come at a wrong time for the Men in Yellow, who wanted to use these upcoming matches as a preparation for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 set to be held in October.

With the right-arm pacer now not available, Australia have now added fast bowler Nathan Ellis to the main squad. The 26-year-old impressed one and all in the Big Bash League (BBL) by scalping 20 wickets in just the 14 games for Hobart Hurricanes last season.

Already with close to seven players not available for Australia due to various personal reasons, this T20I series against Bangladesh provides the other fringe players an opportunity to showcase their skills. The first T20I will begin on August 3 in Dhaka and the final match will be played on August 9. All the matches are set to be staged in Dhaka, due to COVID-19 norms and restrictions.

Matthew Wade named as the skipper for the Bangladesh series

Wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade is now set to take over the leadership reins from Finch. With a good experience of leading domestic teams in Australia, the southpaw is not new in the captaincy front.  With Pat Cummins, David Warner, Marcus Stoinis, and Jhye Richardson missing out, Wade will look at these five games to put on a dominating performance and seal the opening slot, ahead of the T20 World Cup.

Of late Wade has been in good form and is providing the team with good starts upfront. With the additional burden of responsibility, he will be eager to put some pressure on Bangladesh, who are generally considered a pretty dangerous side especially at home.

This series also is mostly the last international series, before the T20 World Cup for the Aussies. With Australia losing the last series against West Indies, the Men in Yellow would be keen to bounce back.