All-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who is expected to go for big money at the IPL auction in Kolkata later this week, has been left out of the Australian ODI squad to tour India in January.
That is despite the all-rounder being ready to play again after taking a short break from the game of cricket to deal with mental health issues. He will lead the Melbourne Stars in their Big Bash campaign, with the selectors monitoring his form in that tournament before he is considered for national selection again, after he had a disappointing World Cup in England.
One man who will make the trip, however, is batsman Marnus Labuschagne, who has just broken into the top five of the ICC world rankings. Labuschagne earns his first call-up to an ODI squad, having been in sensational form in test cricket – three big centuries in his last three test matches – and in the Marsh Cup, where he was named Joint Player of the Tournament.
Josh Hazlewood, Sean Abbott, Ashton Turner and Ashton Agar all return for the tour, but Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh and Marcus Stoinis have all been dropped from the squad that contested the World Cup in what will be Australia’s first ODI series since they were defeated in the semi-final by England at Edgbaston.
Another man to miss out is off-spinner Nathan Lyon, who just helped bowl his country to victory over New Zealand in Perth, but has been excluded in preference to Adam Zampa and Agar. Meanwhile, Peter Handscomb, who scored his maiden ODI century in India earlier this year will keep wicket, with Turner, who missed the World Cup through injury after undergoing shoulder surgery, providing cover where required.
The Australian team will be led by senior assistant coach Andrew McDonald; head coach Justin Langer will stay at home to rest, having been involved in all forms of the game since taking over from Darren Lehman in the wake of the “Sandpaper gate” ball tampering scandal.
Australia will play three ODIs during their Indian tour, starting on 14th January at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The second match will take place at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot on January 17th, with the series concluding two days later in Bengaluru, at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
