Ashes: Australia name unchanged squad for Sydney Test

Sydney, Jan 1 (IANS) Australia have named an unchanged squad from the Boxing Day Test for the upcoming final Test of the Ashes series, though conditions at the SCG could still prompt changes to the final XI. The match is set to begin on January 4 here at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

The announcement was made on Thursday afternoon as the Australian team assembled in Sydney for their first training session following last week’s four-wicket defeat to England. The Melbourne Test ended inside two days on a pitch later deemed “unsatisfactory” by the ICC.

The loss marked Australia’s first defeat to England in red-ball cricket at home in almost 15 years, with 36 wickets falling across two days at the MCG. However, the result carried greater importance for England, as Australia had already secured the Ashes by winning the first three Tests in Perth, Brisbane and Adelaide.

Many fans and cricket experts believe that the upcoming match, known as the New Year’s Test, will be Usman Khawaja’s final appearance for Australia. Additionally, reports indicate that Khawaja plans to speak to the media before the match begins, which fuels retirement rumours. But head coach Andrew McDonald all but guaranteed veteran batter Usman Khawaja would be marking centre in Sydney after posting second-best score of Australia’s first innings in the Boxing Day Test.

Meanwhile, all-rounder Beau Webster might replace Cameron Green in the XI, as the latter has yet to record a significant score in the series. Webster, however, has not yet been part of the XI in any of the four games so far this series and will be eager to end the Ashes strongly, especially since the hosts are already leading 3-1.

“We know we’ve got a quality player sitting there waiting. We’ve got a batting order that we’d like to think can function at a higher capacity, so we’ll be having conversations leading into Sydney,” head coach Andrew McDonald was quoted as saying by Cricket Australia.

Australia squad: Steve Smith (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster

vi/bc