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Australian all-rounders Mitchell Marsh and Glenn Maxwell along with pacer Jhye Richardson have been named in Australia’s 16-man squad for the ODI series against India starting from March 17 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
The ODI series against India will give Australia an opportunity to look at their combination for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 to be played in India later this year.
Australia’s opener David Warner, left-arm spinner Ashton Agar and skipper Pat Cummins have also been included in the ODI squad after they returned home this week from the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy in India.
Cummins returned home earlier this week due to family health reasons but is expected to join the Australia squad ahead of the third Test starting from March 1 in Indore and will stay in India for the ODI series.
However, pacer Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of both the Test and the ODI series due to his Achilles tendonitis injury. He returned home from India to continue his recovery looking at his role in the World Test Championship final and the Ashes after his two-month intense involvement in the IPL.
“It would be great for Josh to be part of this series but we have taken a conservative view ahead of a very important winter in England of which he will be an integral part,” Australia Chairman of selectors George Bailey said.
Meanwhile, both Maxwell and Marsh will return to international cricket following long breaks. Maxwell injured his leg in a freak accident in November last year and has returned to play competitive cricket recently in the last week. In his first game after injury, Maxwell scored 61 for his club team Fitzroy-Doncaster in Victorian premier cricket.
Following that game, he also played for Victoria in a Sheffield Shield match against South Australia this week where he made scores of 5 and 0 and did not bowl in Victoria’s 177-run win.
On the other hand, Marsh has not played for Australia since the three-match ODI series against England in November last year after undergoing his ankle surgery. 31-year-old Marsh has continued to battle with his ankle injury that has been going on throughout his career.
He first missed the ODI series against New Zealand last year, followed by a three-match T20I series against India prior to the World Cup. He then chose to miss the BBL to heal his ankle and get fit for the India ODI series and the upcoming IPL.
Marsh is expected to return to competitive cricket by playing in Western Australia’s 50-over Marsh Cup match Against Tasmania on Sunday and the final on March 8 in Perth, with Western Australia set to host it.
Richardson has also not played international cricket since the Sri Lanka limited-overs tour played in the midway of last year. He has been out with soft tissue injuries this summer while playing for Western Australia and Perth Scorchers. He has managed to play just one 50-over match, two Shield matches and seven BBL matches since then. He suffered a severe hamstring injury halfway into the tournament and also missed the BBL title win of Scorchers.
“With the World Cup just over seven months away, these matches in India are an important step in our preparation. Glenn, Mitchell and Jhye are all important players in what we think the squad might look like come October,” Bailey said.
On Wednesday, Warner flew home after being ruled out of the remaining two Tests due to a hairline fracture in his left elbow. However, he is expected to return to India ahead of the ODI series and will be fit to open the batting alongside Travis Head.
Australia will play a lot of 50-over matches in the next few months and will play lesser T20I matches looking at the preparations for the ODI World Cup which is to be played later this year in India.
Australia ODI squad: Pat Cummins (c), 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
Australia Tour of India 2023 – ODIs
March 17: First ODI, Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, (D/N)
March 19: Second ODI, Dr YS Rajasekhara Reddy Stadium, Vizag, (D/N)
March 22: Third ODI, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, (D/N)
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