Australia captain Pat Cummins signaled a decent chance of Glen Maxwell into the XI for the second Sri Lanka Test in Galle as a spinning all-rounder at No .08 relying upon the wicket they track down on the morning of the Test.
Australia captain Pat Cummins signaled a decent chance of Glenn Maxwell placing into the XI for the second Sri Lanka Test in Galle as a spinning all-rounder at No. 08 relying upon the wicket they track down on the morning of the Test.
Going into the second and final Test with a 1-0 lead, Australia has stayed with the same 12-man squad.
“Same 12,”
said Cummins on Thursday (July 7).
“We’re going to have a look at the wicket today and maybe in the morning as well. See what they end up doing with it. Feels a bit harder than it did last week. Bit of grass on that but they’re mowing it now. So we’ll probably give it right up till tomorrow morning.”
Maxwell will replace Mitchell Starc if Australia decides to add him as the third spinner, although he hasn’t featured in first-class cricket for almost two and a half years. That said, Maxwell was the pick of the bowlers in the one-day series, according to the skipper.
“He was excellent. With the all-around package that he brings in, particularly that bowling, you feel like you can easily get 15-20 overs out of him. Pretty different kind of first-class cricket here to what you might experience playing Sheffield Shield. Different pace. Wickets are so different. The role that we’ll see him in is a little bit of bowling and a bit of batting at No.8 and taking the game on. It might not be grinding out a hundred but a quickfire 30 or 40.”
Cummins revealed that the side was picked for the Sri Lanka series with an eye on the forthcoming Test series in India next year.
“Yeah potentially. I think everyone in this squad that was picked had an eye for India as the one that we’re all building towards for next year. So absolutely, another one for Starcy, it’s going to be hugely valuable for next year.”
Concerning how Starc would remove being left from the XI to accommodate Maxwell, Cummins said his bunch of fast bowlers were team players and knew what they brought to the side.
“Yeah, they’re not happy with their fast-bowling captain. When I took over, they thought we were going to have 6 fast bowlers playing. No, he’ll be fine. It’s purely conditions-based. They know their quality. I think you have to bowl a bit differently from wherever you are playing. England was vastly different from even Australia at times. Another world away from somewhere like here but I think you’ve seen the way Starcy is taking his game to the next level. He’s being a bit different, developing new balls, whether it’s the wobble seam as opposed to trying to swing it. Settling into a groove where he can play a holding role. So I’d just say he’s a better-rounded bowler wherever the conditions are for that game.
“Mitch Starc was the leading wicket-taker here last time. We have another day. We’ll take a look. But they’re great team players. They know their worth to the team.”
