The Australian team has been announced for the first two matches of the Ashes series to be played under the ICC World Test Championship. The Ashes series between England and Australia has been going on for a long time and now again both the countries will be part of this series. Usman Khawaja has returned to the Australian team for the first two matches of this five-match series. He played the last Test match for the team in August 2019 and that was the last Ashes series match. The last Ashes series was tied at 2-2.
At the same time, Mitchell Marsh, who played a match-winning innings in the final match of the T20 World Cup 2021, has not been given a place in the team. The first test match starts on 8 December in Brisbane. The second match will be played in Adelaide from December 16 and this match will be a day-night match, which will be played with Pink Ball. However, Usman Khawaja has been selected in the team not as an opener but as a middle-order batsman. It is believed that at least in the first two Tests, Marcus Harris will be seen opening with David Warner.
Along with leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson and fast bowler Michael Neser, pacer Jhye Richardson has also been selected. Wicket-keeper batsman Matthew Wade has not been included in the 15-man Test squad, while batsman Will Pucovski is also not part of the team as he succumbed to the concussion. George Bailey, chairman of the National Selection Panel, said, “After an extended break between Test matches, we want to build on a strong team mindset in cricket’s incredibly exciting summer season. We are ready for the many challenges of the Ashes series.” To ensure this, the group is well balanced. It has a mix of experienced, proven artists and emerging, developing talent.”
Australia’s team is as follows-
Tim Paine (captain), Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Steve Smith, David Warner.