Australia have opted to rest their premier fast bowlers Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood for the upcoming white-ball tour of Pakistan and Bangladesh, electing to give opportunities to younger and less experienced players as they build depth ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.
Mitchell Marsh will lead the squad across the entire tour, starting with a three-match ODI series against Pakistan on May 30. Uncapped all-rounder Liam Scott and Ollie Peake, who recently captained Australia’s Under-19 World Cup side, have been called up. Riley Meredith and Billy Stanlake also return to the squad.
Senior all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been omitted from the T20 squad for the Bangladesh series, while young batter Joel Davies earns his first international call-up.
The decision to rest Cummins, Starc, and Hazlewood is primarily workload management. All three have recently returned from injuries sustained during the IPL and are now focusing on preparing for Australia’s two-Test home series against Bangladesh later this year.
Several Australian players may also miss the Pakistan ODIs due to IPL playoff commitments, with the IPL final scheduled for May 31, clashing with the tour. Players such as Travis Head, Cooper Connolly, Xavier Bartlett, and Ben Dwarshuis are expected to join the squad in Bangladesh after their IPL campaigns conclude. Matthew Short remains in the Pakistan ODI squad but will not travel to Bangladesh.
The tour provides Australia with a valuable opportunity to test younger talent and build squad depth ahead of major international tournaments.
Australia ODI squad for Pakistan: Mitchell Marsh (c), Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Riley Meredith, Oliver Peake, Matthew Renshaw, Tanveer Sangha, Liam Scott, Matt Short, Billy Stanlake, Adam Zampa
Australia ODI squad for Bangladesh: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Matthew Renshaw, Tanveer Sangha, Liam Scott, Adam Zampa
Australia T20I squad for Bangladesh: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Joel Davies, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Matthew Kuhnemann, Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe, Matthew Renshaw, Adam Zampa
Schedule:
Pakistan ODIs: May 30 (Rawalpindi), June 2 (Lahore), June 4 (Lahore)
Bangladesh ODIs: June 9, 11, 14 (all Dhaka)
Bangladesh T20Is: June 17, 19, 21 (all Chattogram)
