- The home team faces Pakistan from November 4
- ODI and T20 series followed by five Tests against India
Australia have opted to leave out their entire first-choice Test XI for the upcoming Twenty20 series against Pakistan in a move that will leave fans disappointed but ensure the team can prepare for the successful battle for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
After facing Pakistan in three ODIs, starting November 4, Australia will take on the same opponent in the shortest format of international cricket.
But the third and final T20 will take place in Hobart on November 18, just four days before the first Test against India at Perth’s Optus Stadium.
Josh Inglis, uncapped at Test level, is the only member of the T20 squad, named on Monday, who has even a slim chance of being selected to face India.
The Western Australian is in contention to fill the vacant red-ball opener’s spot, but Usman Khawaja’s new opening partner is more likely to be teenage prodigy Sam Konstas or Nathan McSweeney.
Quicks Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis and Spencer Johnson have been called up to the white-ball team after recovering from their injuries.
Australia named the team despite not settling on a captain for all three matches.
A captain to fill the void left by Mitch Marsh, Australia’s sixth paceman, could be Inglis, Adam Zampa or even the enigmatic Glenn Maxwell, captain of the Melbourne Stars in the Big Bash League.
Test captain and big crowd draw Pat Cummins (pictured) will not feature in the upcoming T20 series against Pakistan.
He will be joined on the sidelines by almost all the big stars who have a chance to make the Test squad to play India, including spinner Nathan Lyon (pictured).
Big fan of Marnus Labuschagne? You won’t be able to see it in action in the shorter form of the game this year.
No member of the 13-man squad has captained Australia in any format before.
“This group of players have all represented Australia in T20 cricket so we hope they continue to enhance their international experience throughout this series,” said chairman of selectors George Bailey.
‘We are excited about the combination of combined experiences with those closer to the start of their international travels.
‘It’s particularly encouraging to have Xavier, Spencer and Nathan back in the national set-up.
“It is another opportunity for them to continue demonstrating their ability on the international stage, as they have done in the past.”
AUSTRALIAN T20 TEAM: Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
