All-rounders Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh and fast bowler Jhye Richardson returned from injury layoffs as Australia named a strong 16-man squad for the three-match ODI series against India starting next month. Australia will view the short series between March 17 and 22 as preparation for the World Cup later this year. The matches will be played in Mumbai, Visakhapatnam and Chennai.
Maxwell, who broke his leg and underwent surgery in November after slipping and falling during a friend’s 50th birthday party, proved his fitness by returning to action for Victoria in the Sheffield Shield this week. Marsh, who went under the knife soon after with a lingering left ankle problem, is expected to return in the Marsh One-Day Cup for Western Australia this weekend.
Right-arm paceman Richardson also returned to the team after recovering from a hamstring injury. The 26-year-old has also not played for Australia since the white-ball tour of Sri Lanka last year. “Glenn, Mitchell and Jhye are all important players in what we think the squad could look like in October,” said head of selection George Bailey.
Captain Pat Cummins (family illness), David Warner (hairline fracture in left elbow) and Ashton Agar (poor form), who all returned home after the second Test in Delhi, have been named in the ODI squad. Cummins will return ahead of the third Test, while opener Warner and left-arm spinner Agar will join the squad ahead of the ODI series.
But pace boss Josh Hazlewood was left out after he also returned home early with an Achilles injury. “It would be great for Josh to be part of this series but we’ve taken a conservative view of a very important winter in England that he will be an integral part of,” Bailey said.
It is one of two bilateral one-day series Australia is set to play in India ahead of the FIFA World Cup, the other in September just before the tournament. “With the World Cup just over seven months away, these matches in India are an important step in our preparation.”
Australia ODI squad for tour of India: Pat Cummins (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa
Read Now :<strong>A 7.2-magnitude earthquake struck Tajikistan near the border with China</strong>
