Australia tour of Sri Lanka 2025

[GVGjr]

Australia's tour of Sri Lanka, 2025
First Test: January 29-February 2, Galle
Second Test: February 6-10, Galle
Only ODI: February 13, TBC

There is some talk that Peter Handscomb and Matt Kuhnemann are in the mix for this tour
Can you see any changes? Can we take both Marsh and Webster? Will Head move up the order like he has in India?

[mighty_west]

Australia's tour of Sri Lanka, 2025
First Test: January 29-February 2, Galle
Second Test: February 6-10, Galle
Only ODI: February 13, TBC

There is some talk that Peter Handscomb and Matt Kuhnemann are in the mix for this tour
Can you see any changes? Can we take both Marsh and Webster? Will Head move up the order like he has in India?

Galle is a magnificent looking venue isn't it, and it may have been either Marsh or Trav Head that said just to be there for the tour was awesome because of the surrounds, I'd be taking Webster, perhaps Marsh as backup?, really hard to drop Webster off his debut game given Marsh was dropped on form rather than injury, he has to play imo.

[jeemak]

Where does Marcus Harris sit in terms of a possible return to international cricket? Is he opening at Shield level still? I see he's averaging 49.44 this season. While not an option for Sri Lanka, is he in the conversation again if he finishes this Shield season strongly, starts the next one well and Ussie struggles in the interim?

I think you give Webster the two tests in Sri Lanka and let Marsh rediscover red ball form for the remainder of the Shield season. Webster's earned that time given his excellent performance in Sydney.

Handscombe to me is a good back up, ready to come in for a test if Labuschagne fails. But he's not the future and I think for this series we're just shuffling deck chairs and would be happy to get out of it with a tie.

If the quick bowling trio of Bowland, Hazelwood and Starc are all fit enough, I'd play them with support from Webster with Lyon the only spinner for the first test. Add another spinner if needed in the second, not sure if that's Kuhnemann or Murphy - whoever we think is our longer term option I guess.

[GVGjr]

Galle is a magnificent looking venue isn't it, and it may have been either Marsh or Trav Head that said just to be there for the tour was awesome because of the surrounds, I'd be taking Webster, perhaps Marsh as backup?, really hard to drop Webster off his debut game given Marsh was dropped on form rather than injury, he has to play imo.

It sure is.
Webster should have his nose in front given he can carry a bowling load and did very well with the bat. Marsh is a very popular player in the group so that might challenge the resolve of the selectors
I don't think we need two medium pace all-rounders on a two test series but we are probably regarding Marsh as a batsman anyway. If Head moves to the top of the order that might create a spot.
Handscomb's name being mentioned is an interesting one and he must be clearly seen as a sub-continent specialist. As Jeemak mentioned he's a good back-up and he can bat anywhere in the order.
I just it might have been an opportunity to ease McSweeney back into the squad but Handscomb is a very solid selection.
Kuhnemann being considered also has some merit. Murphy just doesn't offer a point of difference with Lyon.

[GVGjr]

Where does Marcus Harris sit in terms of a possible return to international cricket? Is he opening at Shield level still? I see he's averaging 49.44 this season. While not an option for Sri Lanka, is he in the conversation again if he finishes this Shield season strongly, starts the next one well and Ussie struggles in the interim?

I think you give Webster the two tests in Sri Lanka and let Marsh rediscover red ball form for the remainder of the Shield season. Webster's earned that time given his excellent performance in Sydney.

Handscombe to me is a good back up, ready to come in for a test if Labuschagne fails. But he's not the future and I think for this series we're just shuffling deck chairs and would be happy to get out of it with a tie.

If the quick bowling trio of Bowland, Hazelwood and Starc are all fit enough, I'd play them with support from Webster with Lyon the only spinner for the first test. Add another spinner if needed in the second, not sure if that's Kuhnemann or Murphy - whoever we think is our longer term option I guess.

The selectors probably see Harris as only a if the glass breaks option at the moment. Never quite grasped his chances.

We will probably take just 14 players, perhaps 15 if we want to blood someone so it's congested for spots.

[GVGjr]

Given our aging squad and the fact that there is a ODi straight after the tests would the selectors really shake things up and take someone like Cooper Connolly along as a 15th player?
He could stay there for the ODI as well.

[GVGjr]

From Cricket.com.au

Wrecked' Aussies eye next Test assignment without Cummins

Australia is set for another extended stint in action with a number of players in the selection mix
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy winners will have the best part of a fortnight to recharge after their gruelling series triumph over India, while captain Pat Cummins has likely played his last Test for six months.
Travis Head admitted he was "wrecked" while Cummins admitted he too had little left in the tank for the six-wicket win in Sydney that saw Australia beat India in a Test series for the first time since 2014-15.
It also ensured Australia's qualification for the World Test Championship final which will see them attempt to become the first dual winners of the ICC mace when they face South Africa at Lord's in June.
Australians are loathe to miss any Test series, but Cummins' expected absence from the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka due to the birth of his second child later this month may be more agreeable given the two Tests (their last of this current WTC cycle) are effectively dead rubbers.
"We'll wait and see," Cummins told reporters. "(His wife) Becky is hanging on at the moment, so we'll play by it by ear. But most likely I might struggle to get over there." Decade first: Australia win Border-Gavaskar Trophy
The bulk of Australia's squad for Sri Lanka, to be named later this week, will spend just under a week training in Dubai to prepare for the two Tests in Galle, where vicious spinning surfaces typically welcome touring sides.

Cummins' likely absence means Steve Smith may have the captaincy reins when he attempts to finally pass the 10,000-run mark after becoming the first man to be dismissed twice in the 9,990s, nixing what would have been a fairytale moment in front of his home crowd.
"I got chain-sawed didn’t I!" Smith told Triple M of his second-innings dismissal that saw him caught at gully off a lifter from Prasidh Krishna one run short of becoming the fourth Australian to the milestone.
Asked if he would play on next home summer, the 35-year-old said: "Yeah I think so. I was keen to go to Sri Lanka anyway – beyond there we’ll see what happens.

"We’re in the WTC final now so that will be exciting. Then we’ll take it day-by-day. It’s been a long summer so far, I’ve enjoyed it. It’s been fun to be in the runs again the last couple of weeks and a great series result."
Head is the other co vice-captain and could also be considered to take over from Cummins in Sri Lanka. The left-hander, Australia's leading run-scorer against India with centuries in Adelaide and Brisbane, conceded the series had taken a toll.
"It’s been a crazy five Tests and the guys who got through all five are looking forward to a bit of time off," Head told Fox Cricket on Sunday.
"It’s a bloody tough tour and it's nice to come out on the winning side of things today. I’m wrecked, I don’t know what I’m going to do in the next few days but we’ve got 10 or 12 days off now before we go to Sri Lanka and I’m going to use every little bit of that.
"I’ll look forward to a couple of cold ones tonight, I’ve been off the drink for a bit, so I’ll look after myself and our attention will turn to what’s next."
Having fended off questions about his playing future during the India series, Usman Khawaja will be an important figure for Australia’s return to the subcontinent.
The opener averaged a tick over 20 against India in exceptionally difficult new-ball batting conditions, with Jasprit Bumrah dismissing him six times. He described the speedster as "the toughest bowler I've ever faced".
"To be honest, guys, I was just getting 'Bumrah'd'," Khawaja told the ABC after making a telling 41 in Australia’s fourth-innings chase when Bumrah was injured.
"It was friggin' tough work. People are asking me, 'What's going on? ' I'm being honest. I'm just getting Bumrah’d. I have to face this guy with a new ball every single time.
"You never wanted to see anyone injured – and it's a shame he was – but thank God for us, because today would have been an absolute nightmare facing him on that wicket.
"You can see what a big part of the team he was and everyone felt it. As soon as we didn't see Bumrah out there, we had this sense like, 'all right, now we've got actually got a chance here'."

Australia may also consider the need for Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood to go to Sri Lanka with both finishing the home summer with injury concerns. Starc pushed through the final two Tests with a rib niggle, while Hazlewood missed them with a calf strain.

The ensuing Champions Trophy event being played in February-March in Pakistan is a further consideration in how they deploy their all-format players.

Recent debutants Sam Konstas and Beau Webster were both in the dark over whether they would make the Sri Lanka squad, though it would be a surprise if either missed given their crucial performances in Australia's wins in Melbourne and Sydney.

Konstas could be a victim of Head's possible return to the opening spot, which he thrived in on Australia's most recent Test tour of the subcontinent in India in early 2023. If Australia went that way, the door would be ajar for Josh Inglis or Peter Handscomb to bat in the middle order. 'Might never happen again': Webster's extraordinary debut
Inglis is currently recovering from a calf strain, while Handscomb spent time around the Test team in Sydney along with Matthew Kuhnemann and Todd Murphy. Those two spinners were also strong performers in India two years ago and will be in selection calculations in Sri Lanka.
Webster's seam bowling also makes him an attractive proposition if pitches are sufficiently spin-friendly that only one specialist paceman is picked. The Tasmanian's previous experience in Sri Lanka is limited to a Tasmanian development squad tour in 2017 back when he was still exclusively bowling off-spin.
Konstas meanwhile gained subcontinental experience on a MRF tour of India last year, which has proved a helpful proving ground for emerging Australian players ahead of Asian tours.
"Not too sure if I’m selected yet but obviously, adapting to different conditions, maybe we’ll find a new Sam," Konstas told Triple M.

[BontlowSzn]

Webster just has to stay in the side now. He just looked like a player who was comfortable and knew his strengths and role. Whether that's batting, bowling or fielding.

10+ years of state cricket and improving his craft has and will continue to serve him well.

[GVGjr]

Webster just has to stay in the side now. He just looked like a player who was comfortable and knew his strengths and role. Whether that's batting, bowling or fielding.

10+ years of state cricket and improving his craft has and will continue to serve him well.

We will almost certainly play 2 spin bowlers against Sri Lanka so he will be a handy option.
I'm not sure if his bowling can get wickets with the Sri Lankan conditions but he will keep it tight and test their batting.

[lemmon]

Selectors will have to deal with competing priorities come Sri Lanka - it's obviously a Test series first and foremost that we want to win but we're building towards some cricket in very different conditions. In the short term, that's the WTC final against a very good South African seam attack, after that the next big assignment is the homes Ashes, and then obviously any cricket in Asia is huge for giving guys exposure ahead of our next Indian tour in 24-months time.

I think we need to be picking the batting with the WTC final in mind. A one-all draw in Sri Lanka isn't the end of the world here, and we need to figure out what our top-3 looks like.

For me, that means shelving talk of Trav Head moving up the order and sticking with Konstas and Khawaja.

I don't think Konstas is ready but he's been okay and they've gone with him as their man. He needs to play cricket and two Tests without the same pressure and hype could be incredibly important for him to find his rhythm. Head won't be opening come the WTC Final, so if we think Konstas is plan A, he needs to work out how to make sustainable runs before facing Rabada and co.

The same for Khawaja. If Konstas is opening, you need a mature player up the other end. The pitches will suit him in Sri Lanka, there's no Bumrah, so he's probably safe until the WTC final.

In between the WTC Final and the Ashes, we have three tests in the Windies, so that'd be the time to make batting changes. If Khawaja, Konstas and Marnus don't get runs in Sri Lanka or in the WTC final, changes have to come with Renshaw, McSweeney and a returning Green back into the frame.

I don't think I'd take Marsh, and would have McSweeney over as the spare bat. He's a good player of spin and needs to know he's still right in contention.

On the bowling end, totally fine for Cummins to not go and have a break. Boland and Starc should carry the seamer workload, with someone like Sean Abbott in as the reserve seamer.

If Starc isn't ready, I think you need someone with more air speed and the ability to reverse the ball - so probably Jhye Richardson if they think his body is right.

I'd be keen to have a look at Rocchiccioli in those conditions - he's very Harbajhan Singh in his style - but I don't think you can take three right-handed offies and Murphy has form and better Shield numbers. Kuhnemann goes as the horses-for-courses pick and I have him in my starting side as Sri Lanka had 5 right handers in the top 7 in their last test side.

So my touring party and side looks like:

Khawaja
Konstas
Marnus
Smith
Head (c)
Webster
Carey

McSweeney and Inglis in reserve - Inglis first to be called upon should we need a replacement bat.

Starc
Lyon
Boland
Kuhnemann

Murphy and Abbott as the spare bowlers.

I'd give Head the captaincy. He does it for his state and he's the only long-term option should something happen with Cummins.

[GVGjr]

Selectors will have to deal with competing priorities come Sri Lanka - it's obviously a Test series first and foremost that we want to win but we're building towards some cricket in very different conditions. In the short term, that's the WTC final against a very good South African seam attack, after that the next big assignment is the homes Ashes, and then obviously any cricket in Asia is huge for giving guys exposure ahead of our next Indian tour in 24-months time.

I think we need to be picking the batting with the WTC final in mind. A one-all draw in Sri Lanka isn't the end of the world here, and we need to figure out what our top-3 looks like.

For me, that means shelving talk of Trav Head moving up the order and sticking with Konstas and Khawaja.

I don't think Konstas is ready but he's been okay and they've gone with him as their man. He needs to play cricket and two Tests without the same pressure and hype could be incredibly important for him to find his rhythm. Head won't be opening come the WTC Final, so if we think Konstas is plan A, he needs to work out how to make sustainable runs before facing Rabada and co.

The same for Khawaja. If Konstas is opening, you need a mature player up the other end. The pitches will suit him in Sri Lanka, there's no Bumrah, so he's probably safe until the WTC final.

In between the WTC Final and the Ashes, we have three tests in the Windies, so that'd be the time to make batting changes. If Khawaja, Konstas and Marnus don't get runs in Sri Lanka or in the WTC final, changes have to come with Renshaw, McSweeney and a returning Green back into the frame.

I don't think I'd take Marsh, and would have McSweeney over as the spare bat. He's a good player of spin and needs to know he's still right in contention.

On the bowling end, totally fine for Cummins to not go and have a break. Boland and Starc should carry the seamer workload, with someone like Sean Abbott in as the reserve seamer.

If Starc isn't ready, I think you need someone with more air speed and the ability to reverse the ball - so probably Jhye Richardson if they think his body is right.

I'd be keen to have a look at Rocchiccioli in those conditions - he's very Harbajhan Singh in his style - but I don't think you can take three right-handed offies and Murphy has form and better Shield numbers. Kuhnemann goes as the horses-for-courses pick and I have him in my starting side as Sri Lanka had 5 right handers in the top 7 in their last test side.

So my touring party and side looks like:

Khawaja
Konstas
Marnus
Smith
Head (c)
Webster
Carey

McSweeney and Inglis in reserve - Inglis first to be called upon should we need a replacement bat.

Starc
Lyon
Boland
Kuhnemann

Murphy and Abbott as the spare bowlers.

I'd give Head the captaincy. He does it for his state and he's the only long-term option should something happen with Cummins.

Thanks, it's a good read.
Just intrigued why Inglis is seen as a genuine batting contender? Is it a sign of the lack of contenders or something else?
Do you think Webster might bowl some offies?

[lemmon]

Thanks, it's a good read.
Just intrigued why Inglis is seen as a genuine batting contender? Is it a sign of the lack of contenders or something else?
Do you think Webster might bowl some offies?

He's averaged 72 in the Shield this year, has two hundreds in three matches and plays spin about as well as anyone in the country. He also has international white ball runs in Asia - I think he has every right to be next cab off the rank in those conditions (I wouldn't say the same in the UK for example).

I don't think that reflects a lack of options - McSweeney is a good player of spin and Handscomb has had success - it says more about where Inglis is as a cricketer. No doubt in my mind he's test-match ready.

I think Webster will be exclusive bowling seamers to be honest. He hasn't bowled offies in 5+ years and I don't think it's necessary unless we're playing three seamers. More likely that we see more of Travis Head's bowling - I'm sure he'll be reminding a few that he's currently averaging 31 with the ball in test match cricket.

[Grantysghost]

There's a typo in the thread title G.

[Sedat]

Webster also bowls very handy off-spin - think Salman from Pakistan. Coupled with his accurate seamers and solid technique with the bat, Webster is just about the first picked for the tour.

We will likely go skinny with pacemen for this tour as most will be under-bowled on these turning decks anyway. Webster could open the bowling with one of the quicks and then bowl some back-up spin to give the 2 specialist spinners a chop-out.

[GVGjr]

Webster also bowls very handy off-spin - think Salman from Pakistan. Coupled with his accurate seamers and solid technique with the bat, Webster is just about the first picked for the tour.

We will likely go skinny with pacemen for this tour as most will be under-bowled on these turning decks anyway. Webster could open the bowling with one of the quicks and then bowl some back-up spin to give the 2 specialist spinners a chop-out.

Adam White mentioned the other day that a few years back Webster would occasionally bowl a mixture of away swingers to right handers and offies against the left handers within the same over but as Lemmon has pointed out he's pretty much given away the off spinners.