Nic Maddinson clamps down place as Aussies go unchanged

Left-handed batsman Nic Maddinson has retained his place in the Australian side for the upcoming Boxing Day Test match in spite of the fatal form he is in currently. Maddinson’s string of low scores has not seem him really become the most favorable person when it comes to his batting form in recent times.

Moreover, the inclusion of Hilton Cartwright in the side has seen Maddinson’s place in the side come under a certain substantial threat in recent times as his performances in the MCG would very well turn out to be make or break as far as Maddinson is concerned.

Steve Smith, the Aussie skipper backed the struggling southpaw and expected him to come good in the upcoming match at the MCG. The fact that the Aussies are sticking to the same squad makes it clear that Chadd Sayers would have to wait a bit longer to receive his first ever Test cap.

“Obviously (Nic) hasn’t started the way he would have liked,” Smith said on Sunday. “I was really proud of him in the second innings in Brisbane to come out and do the thing for the team and try and score quick runs and have a crack. That’s what we want from our team, to have unselfish players like that and I thought he did a good job to come out and do that.”

Smith also spoke on the addition of Hilton Cartwright into the side. “We brought the all-rounder into the squad because the bowlers had a pretty heavy workload but they’ve pulled up well and they’re confident they can get through,” Smith added.

Australia Playing XI: Steve Smith (c), David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Peter Handscomb, Nic Maddinson, Matthew Wade (wk), Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird