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Melbourne, July 15 (HS). Australia has announced its T20 International team for the upcoming series against Scotland and England. Perth Scorchers all-rounder Cooper Connolly is a new face in the team.
The post-David Warner era has begun for Australia, and a new opening pair will take the field for their white-ball series against Scotland and England. The Australian team will play a three-match T20 series against Scotland in September. Australia will also play three T20s and five ODIs against England later this month.
The three T20 matches against Scotland will be played on September 4, 6 and 7 and the T20 series against England will start from September 11.
In place of Warner, Jake Fraser-McGurk has been included in the T20 squad for both the series and the ODI squad against England. Fraser-McGurk would like to establish himself as a long-term opener for Australia.
Connolly has featured in 15 domestic T20 matches. He performed brilliantly for Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League 2022-23 final by scoring 25* off 11 balls. In his Sheffield Shield debut, he scored 90 against Tasmania earlier this year. Mitchell Marsh will lead the team in the absence of Pat Cummins, who has been rested. Cummins is currently involved in the ongoing Major League Cricket with the San Francisco Unicorns.
The experienced duo of Mitchell Starc and Glenn Maxwell will also miss the T20 series, but will join the team for the ODI series against England. Matthew Short, who accompanied Australia's T20 World Cup squad as a reserve player, will miss the T20 tour due to the birth of his first child.
National selector George Bailey said in a Cricket Australia statement, “This tour gives us a great opportunity to bring in some new players in the absence of David Warner and Matthew Wade, as well as giving some senior players time to prepare for the home summer and a busy first half of next year. We are particularly pleased to give Cooper his first opportunity in the T20 squad after adding players like Jake, Spencer, Xavier and Aaron over the last 12 months. They are exciting prospects to join the likes of Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis and Josh Inglis in the white-ball set-up.”
With almost seven months left for the ICC Champions Trophy, Australia would be looking to find the right balance in the ODI squad.
He said, “With the Champions Trophy on our doorstep early next year, a white-ball series against Pakistan in the summer and a big home Test series against India, there is a lot of planning going on over these next six months. This includes gradually incorporating new players into our white-ball squads who have earned international opportunities through excellent form in the Big Bash or state cricket.”
Australia T20 squad for Scotland and England: Mitchell Marsh (captain), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wicketkeeper), Spencer Johnson, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.
Australia ODI squad for England: Mitchell Marsh (captain), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey (wicketkeeper), Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis (wicketkeeper), Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa.