Josh Hazlewood to debut; Shaun
Marsh and Mitchell Starc included
for Brisbane Test
Stand-in skipper, Steve Smith
announced that there will be three
changes in the Australian eleven for
the second Test against India at the
Gabba, which starts on December
17th. Apart from Michael Clarke, who
will miss the remainder of the series
with a hamstring injury, Ryan Harris
will also miss the game as he is
suffering a slight strain in his
quadriceps. Peter Siddle, who was
lack-lustre in the opening Test in
Adelaide, has been dropped.
Pacer, Josh Hazlewood will be making
his Test debut while left-arm quick,
Mitchell Starc, whose last game was
in Abu Dhabi against Pakistan, has
been recalled to the eleven. Shaun
Marsh is the other change in the
eleven, as he comes in place of
Clarke. Smith also mentioned that he
will move up to No. 4 while Shaun
will bat at No. 5.
While he is hopeful that Harris will
be fit for the Boxing Day Test in
Melbourne, Smith said the selectors
could not risk playing the pacer in
Brisbane. "Ryan Harris pulled up a
little bit stiff and sore from Adelaide.
He's got a slight quad strain. Darren
Lehmann has always said if our
bowlers aren't 100% fit going into the
match we won't be playing them. It's
very unfortunate for Ryan but
hopefully he gets his body right
soon."
"I think he'll be okay in a couple of
days. It's just going into a Test match
if you're not 100% fit that's the way
it goes with this team. Hopefully he
gets a bit of work done with the
physios in the next couple of days
and can start running and hopefully
he'll be fine for Melbourne," he
added.
Smith said Starc deserved a place in
the eleven while he said it was
disappointing to leave out Siddle. "In
regards to the inclusion of Mitchell
Starc, I think we just wanted to play
a bowler with a bit of extra pace and
bounce. Mitchell went back and
bowled really well for New South
Wales in the last couple of Shield
games and deserves his spot."
"It's obviously very disappointing for
Peter Siddle, who's been a terrific
bowler over a long period of time.
He's certainly not out of the loop.
He's still in and around the team and
hopefully he'll get another game
soon," Smith said.
The 23-year-old Hazlewood, who has
been part of the Test squad on
several occasions earlier, has finally
earned his maiden Test cap and
Smith said he is impressed with the
way the youngster has been
performing in the domestic circuit.
"It's very exciting, I've watched Josh
very closely over the last couple of
years at New South Wales and he
impresses me every time. He's only
getting better and better. This pitch
out here is going to suit him
perfectly. He's very skilful for his
age, and I'm just looking forward to
seeing him zing a few through and
bowl with that extra pace and get
that extra bit of bounce as well."
"I think that's part of the reason
Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood
have been included in the team. It's
traditionally quite a fast and bouncy
wicket and it looks no different out
there for this Test match. Hopefully
after the wickets we've played on
recently in Test cricket, the Adelaide
Oval and the two in the UAE, it's
exciting for our fast bowlers to finally
have something that's going to have
a bit of liveliness to it," he added.
Regarding the change in the batting
positions, the Australian skipper said:
"I've had a chat to a couple of the
senior players and the coach about
it. I just thought taking over the
captaincy and a bit of extra
responsibility that I'd step up to
No.4 and get the job done there. I
don't think there's a big difference
between batting 4 and 5, so that's
just the way I've gone with it."
Australia XI: David Warner, Chris
Rogers, Shane Watson, Steven Smith
(capt), Shaun Marsh, Mitchell Marsh,
Brad Haddin (wk), Mitchell Johnson,
Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh
Hazlewood.
Josh Hazlewood to debut; Shaun Marsh and Mitchell Starc included for Brisbane Test | Cricket News | Latest Cricket Updates | Cricbuzz.com
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