Australia are set to face a selection headache for Sri Lanka, with Josh Hazlewood on track to overcome a calf injury and be available for the two-Test series.
Fresh off Australia’s 3-1 Border-Gavaskar Trophy triumph, selectors will this week turn an eye to trying to keep the Warne-Muralitharan Trophy when they play Sri Lanka in Galle.
Pat Cummins has already conceded he will struggle to play in either of the two Tests, as he plans to remain at home awaiting the birth of his second child.
But even with the captain out, selectors will likely face a fast-bowling squeeze for the first Test on January 29.
Australia played two quicks in both Tests on their most recent trip to Sri Lanka in 2022, but did toy with going with only one for the second of those matches.
Hazlewood missed the end of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series after picking up a calf strain at the Gabba, but saw medical staff at the SCG on Saturday and appeared in good shape.
Scott Boland celebrates the wicket of Ravindra Jadeja. (Photo by Gareth Copley-ICC/ICC via Getty Images)
Mitchell Starc is also not believed to be in any doubt for the tour, after overcoming rib pain to play in the final Test against India in Sydney.
That will leave selectors to try to fit three quicks into as few as one or two spots, and Scott Boland again at risk of missing out after his SCG heroics.
Boland’s career average of 17.66 is the best of any bowler in more than a century, but he has only once been picked ahead of one of the “big three” of Starc, Hazlewood and Cummins.
“Whenever he comes in, you just know he is a seasoned pro, he has been doing it for years for Victoria,” Cummins said.
“He’s well and truly good enough in Test cricket. He proves it time and time again.
“He bowls into the wind a lot of the time as well, so his figures are probably better than they show.
“You know what you’re going to get from Scotty, and it’s class every day.”
The other factor in the pace-bowling squeeze could be Beau Webster, who became the first Australian in 11 years to score a half-century and take a wicket on Test debut.
The allrounder got through a tidy 17 overs at the SCG, with workload proving no concern.
That could theoretically allow Australia to drop down one frontline quick in Galle, with Webster acting as a second while taking the new ball.
Nathan Lyon could then feature as one of three specialist spinners, with Todd Murphy his back-up and Matt Kuhnemann spinning the ball the other way.
“Beau was huge (in Sydney),” Cummins said.
“He is one of those quintessential allrounders where you feel like they are going to contribute in every facet of the game.
“That’s what he does for Tasmania, and proved that. (He) bowled some really important overs, (took) great catches and (made) two really important knocks.”
The top of the order also looms as a quandary for selectors, with Travis Head a possibility to open the batting again in Asia after doing so successfully in India in 2023.
Either Usman Khawaja or Sam Konstas would have to make way, allowing Peter Handscomb or Josh Inglis to come into the middle order.
Khawaja is a renowned player of spin in Asia and earned the backing of Cummins after Sydney, while Konstas would earn crucial subcontinent experience if he plays.
Cummins has indicated Khawaja’s dream of a home Ashes farewell is still alive, insisting he is batting as well as ever.
Khawaja’s future remains a point of debate following Australia’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy win, after Michael Clarke called for the opener to retire at the SCG Test.
Khawaja has made no secret of his desire to play through to next summer’s Ashes, by which point he would be 39 and Australia’s oldest Test cricketer since Bob Holland almost 40 years.
Australia have a two-Test tour of Sri Lanka beginning later this month, a World Test Championship final in June and three Tests in the Caribbean before next summer.
Khawaja passed 50 just once this summer against India, and has not hit a century in his last 31 completed innings dating back to the opening Test of the 2023 Ashes.
He was dismissed six times by Jasprit Bumrah this summer, with the world’s best bowler dominating Australia’s top order.
But Khawaja’s experience came to the fore late in the five-Test series against India, providing a cool head as debutant opener Sam Konstas hit 57 on Boxing Day.
The 38-year-old’s calmness also proved vital at the SCG, holding Australia’s top order together with his second-innings 41 to help Australia chase down a series-clinching 162.
Usman Khawaja walks off after being dismissed by Jasprit Bumrah. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
“I felt very comfortable when he was out there batting. He looked so assured,” Cummins said.
“It literally doesn’t get any harder than opening the batting on these pitches against a quality bowling attack. It’s the hardest job in cricket.
“I thought he looked really good at times. Sometimes he got some really good balls. He looks like he’s batting as well as any other time.”
Cummins said Khawaja’s future would not be based upon his age, as long as he produced runs.
“He didn’t get the runs he would have liked but then you get (the SCG) innings where he shows his maturity and experience is so valuable,” Cummins said.
“He always says age is just a number. Took some good catches in the field as well, still moving alright.
“There’s no end date from our end. As long as he’s still scoring some runs.”
Khawaja is a renowned player of spin on the sub-continent, and selectors must decide if he and Konstas stay together in Sri Lanka or if Travis Head moves back to open.
Head has done so in Asia in the past with some success in India in 2023, while his move would allow Peter Handscomb or Josh Inglis to come into the middle order.
Handscomb spent time with Australia’s squad during the SCG Test and is a good player of spin, while Inglis is recovering from a minor calf strain.
Australia’s players will begin to leave for a training camp in the UAE from January 18, with batters expected to filter back into the BBL for regular-season games before then.
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