Published: Jul 31, 2016, 01:48 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 31, 2016, 04:02 PM (IST)
As Australia pick their squad for their upcoming One-Day International (ODI) series against hosts Sri Lanka, Moises Henriques finds a place while Glenn Maxwell has to sit out. Australia are scheduled to play five ODIs followed by three Tests in Sri Lanka and did not have a positive start, losing the opening Test. Maxwell has been one of the crucial members of Australian team in limited-over formats but has not been in his best of forms lately. Though the all-rounder has been effective with his spin, Australia needed him more as a potential middle-order batsman, a responsibility he has failed to pull off properly. FULL CRICKET SCORECARD: Sri Lanka vs Australia, 1st Test at Pallekele
Australia’s chairman of selectors, Rod Marsh told to espncricinfo.com, “If you want to play cricket for Australia, you should be consistent. If you are batsman, you should get consistent runs. If you are a bowler, you should get consistent wickets, or bowl well. As far as I am concerned, he has had a lot of chances. It got to that stage – we couldn’t go on any longer. Glenn has too many games where he doesn’t contribute with the bat. He is a hell of a good fieldsman, as we know, he is handy bowler, and, at his best, he is one of our first picked in a one-day team.”
“But if he is not making runs, then we have got to find a solution to it. The solution we have come up with is to put him back a step or two and see if he can get some runs there on a consistent basis. When you have got as much talent as that, you should be able to play all forms. He took it as well as what could be expected. No one likes being dropped but he understood the reasons and he also understands what he’s got to do.”
Shaun Marsh has also made his way into the squad while Travis Head has been dropped.
Australia squad: Steven Smith (c), Usman Khawaja, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, David Warner, George Bailey, Nathan Coulter-Nile, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade, Adam Zampa.
