Australia fast bowler Mitchell Starc has been ruled out of the ODI series against India due to injury sustained during the second Test win over Sri Lanka. Australia are travelling to India for two T20Is and five-match ODI series.
Starc will be replaced by Kane Richardson in the 15-man squad announced by Cricket Australia on Thursday. Starc, who was the man of the match in the second Domain Test against Sri Lanka in Canberra for claiming 10 wickets, is suffering from pectoral muscle injury in his upper body.
Richardson, who shone in the Big Bash T20 League for the Melbourne Renegades, is recalled for his first international series after Australia were whitewashed 5-0 by England last year. “Kane not only has experience playing ODI cricket for Australia, but he’s also performed well for his country when given the opportunity,” said selector Trevor Hohns in a statement.
Starc’s absence will be a setback to Australia’s preparations for World Cup 2019, set to take place in May in the United Kingdom. “Unfortunately, scans have revealed that Mitchell Starc sustained a substantial tear to his left pec muscle while bowling on the final day of the test match in Canberra,” Hohns said. “This means he will be unavailable for the tour of India, but we will instead target a return to play for the ODI series against Pakistan in the UAE in March.”
Fellow seamer Josh Hazlewood has also been sidelined for the ODI tour as he recovers from a back injury picked up in the Domain Test series against India. With Hazlewoord not available, paceman Pat Cummins will be the vice-captain along with wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey under regular skipper Aaron Finch.
Squad:
Aaron Finch (captain), Usman Khawaja, Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Glenn Maxwell, Ashton Turner, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa, D’Arcy Short
