Australia once again gets a setback after their star pacer Mitchell Starc has pulled his name out from the Champions Trophy squad due to some personal reasons.
The team has already undergone some huge changes into their list of 15. Their regular skipper Pat Cummins has been ruled out due to injury along with Josh Hazlewood and all-rounder Mitchell Marsh. Steve Smith has been handed over the leadership role for the upcoming ICC tournament.
Chairman of the selection panel George Bailey said, “We understand and respect Mitch’s decision. Mitch is deeply respected for his commitment to international cricket and the priority he places on performing for Australia. His well documented ability to play through pain and adversity, as well as forgoing opportunities in other parts of his career to put his country first should be applauded. His loss is of course a blow for the Champions Trophy campaign but does provide an opportunity to someone else to make a mark on the tournament.”
Marcus Stoinis has already declared his retirement from ODI cricket. Due to these problems Aussies have declared – Sean Abbott, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Spencer Johnson, Tanveer Sangha and Ben Dwarshuis as the replacements. Whereas Cooper Connolly has been the traveling reserve for the team.
Bailey also added, “The squad has changed significantly over the past month on the back of some untimely injuries and the retirement of Marcus Stoinis. The upside of that is that we have been able to call on players who have had international exposure and success over the past 12 months. A strong core of some of our most experienced players will provide a strong foundation in our attempt to win this edition of the Champions Trophy. We have a range of options to shape the playing XI within the tournament depending on the opposition and conditions we face.”
They are in Group B along with England, Afghanistan and South Africa. Their first match will be against England on February 22.
Updated Australian squad:
Steve Smith ©, Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Tanveer Sangha, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa.
George Bailey profile credits: cricbuzz.com