Australia have named injured fast bowlers Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood as well as big-hitter Tim David in their provisional squad for the Twenty20 World Cup in February-March, while expanding their spin options to adapt to the conditions in Sri Lanka and India.
Cummins, who has not played an international match in the short format since June 2024, was rested from the last two Ashes matches against England to manage his back problems, playing only the third Test of the series.
The pacer will undergo final scans later this month to determine his participation in the World Cup, Cricket Australia said. The teams have until January 31 to name their final squads.
Hazlewood was ruled out of the entire Ashes series with an Achilles injury as he recovered from a hamstring strain, while David suffered another hamstring injury in the Big Bash League (BBL) on Boxing Day.
They are progressing well and we are confident they will be available for the World Cup,” Australian selection chairman George Bailey said.
Australia have also made surprise call-ups to left-handed spinners Matt Kuhnemann and Cooper Connolly, who have just one T20 wicket between them.
They join experienced leg-spinner Adam Zampa, with Glenn Maxwell and Matthew Short providing additional support for the spin.
This is a preliminary team, so if any changes need to be made, they will be made before the support period,” Bailey said.
Connolly has been in sublime form with the bat in the BBL this year scoring 170 runs in four matches with a strike rate of 166.
Australia, who will play their group matches in Sri Lanka, will be led by Mitchell Marsh as captain and begin their World Cup campaign against Ireland on February 11.
Australia squad for the T20 World Cup: Mitchell Marsh (captain), Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Cameron Green, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
