Australia have announced their 17-member squad for the much-anticipated four-match Test series against India, which begins on December 17.
The No. 1 Test team in the world has included youngsters Will Pucovski and Cameron Green for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Sean Abbott, Mitchell Swepson and Michael Neser complete the list of five uncapped players in their extended Test squad.
With the return of David Warner and Steve Smith, who missed the 2018-19 home series owing to their ball-tampering ban, Australia will start as favourites against a formidable Indian cricket team.
"What we saw in the opening rounds of the Marsh Sheffield Shield were a number of players performing exceptionally well," said Cricket Australia national selector Trevor Hohns said on Thursday.
"Two of those many standout players were, of course, Cameron Green and Will Pucovski. Their undeniable form demanded selection and we are very pleased to have these young men in the squad for what will be a tremendous Test Series against an extremely formidable opponent," he added.
Pat Cummins has been named the sole deputy to captain Tim Paine.
Meanwhile, Cricket Australia has also named their 19-member Australia 'A' squad, which will take on India ‘A' in tour matches at Drummoyne Oval and the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The Indian cricket team will start the Test series with the pink-ball Test in Adelaide on December 17.
Here’s the full AUS vs IND Test match schedule:
Match details | Venue |
Australia vs India, 1st Test | Adelaide |
Australia vs India, 2nd Test | Melbourne |
Australia vs India, 3rd Test | Sydney |
Australia vs India, 4th Test | Brisbane |
Australia Test squad for India’s 2020-21 tour: Sean Abbott, Joe Burns, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Tim Paine (c), James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner
Australia 'A' squad: Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Joe Burns, Jackson Bird, Alex Carey (wk), Harry Conway, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Nic Maddinson, Mitchell Marsh (subject to fitness), Michael Neser, Tim Paine, James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Mark Steketee, Will Sutherland, Mitchell Swepson
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Jeremy Ng