David Warner retains spot as Australia name WTC final, Ashes squad
WTC final will take place on June 7.
Ahead of the all-important World Test Championship (WTC) finale against India at the Oval, Australia have announced their 17-member squad for the marquee clash. Notably, all-rounder Mitchell Marsh, Josh Inglis and opener Marcus Harris have all been recalled by the team management ahead of the English summer.
Interestingly, Southpaw David Warner, too, made it to the squad after a poor run of form with the bat. He is currently going through a rough patch in the longest format of the game, and thus, there were a few concerns regarding his selection. However, the management has shown faith in the veteran as the UK summer can very well be his last dance in Test cricket.
On the other hand, Australia skipper Pat Cummins will be making his return to the team. The 29-year-old missed the final two Test matches of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy due to his mother's demise, and since then, he hasn't played any professional cricket. The ace pacer decided to skip the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League to focus on the WTC final and The Ashes, and thus, will be gunning to make his return in the month of June.
Notably, senior batter Steven Smith will play a couple of matches in the County Championship to keep him ready for the big UK tour. Marnus Labuschagne, the number one ranked Test batter, will also feature in England's domestic season, and so will Marcus Harris, who is set to make his return to the Australian Test squad after a long gap.
As per Cricket Australia, the squad will assemble in England in late May, and there will be trimmed to a 15-member side as per ICC requirements.
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47"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," national selection panel chair George Bailey said today as quoted by Cricket Australia.
The UK is a very different assignment from our most recent tour of India, and some of the changes are based upon the conditions we are anticipating. Marcus (Harris), Josh (Inglis, reserve keeper) and Mitch (Marsh) return to the squad and will provide valuable depth and flexibility within their respective skill sets. 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".
World Test Championship Final and Men's Ashes squad: 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
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