2023 Tour of India

[GVGjr]

Spin sensation Todd Murphy in line for Test debut

Australia is primed to launch a spin-heavy attack in the opening Test in India, with a 23-year-old rookie looming as the tourist’s secret weapon. See the likely squad and three key additions.

Young spin sensation Todd Murphy looks set to be chosen in the Australian outfit to tour India next month, with Mitchell Swepson also well placed to be included in a four-pronged spin squadron.

Australia is already open-minded to the prospect of playing three spinners in the viper’s den of Nagpur for the first Test, and will cover all bases with its Test squad set to be announced later this week.

Nathan Lyon and Ashton Agar will headline the spin unit, but the addition of off-spinner Murphy and leggie Swepson will provide selectors the same coverage they took to India the last time the team toured back in 2017.

There is good continuity between that squad from six years ago to now, with Lyon, Agar and Swepson all part of that 2017 tour and now much better players for the experience gained since.

Victorian Murphy might be unheralded as far as Australian audiences are concerned, but selectors have massive raps on the kid from Echuca and regard him as their No.2 spinner.

It’s difficult for him to play in the same XI as Lyon because they’re both offies, but in India where as many as three spinners might be required on certain decks, Murphy is massively in the frame for a debut Test aged 23.

And if he doesn’t get a cap, the experience will be immeasurable.

The fact hard-nosed Victorian batsman Peter Handscomb was called into the Australian squad this week appears a clear pointer to him being part of the Indian touring party, potentially doubling as a back-up wicketkeeper.

Australian selectors are set to pick injured stars Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc in the squad, but the fact they enter under a cloud may mean an 18 man squad – two bigger than the 16-man 2017 party taken to India.

There is significant doubt over whether Starc will be fit to play the first Test on February 9 and Lance Morris may go as his shadow for the air speed that almost got him selected at the SCG.

It’s unlikely Australia will take a like-for-like back-up for Green – but they will take Matthew Renshaw as a reserve batsman, and Agar’s versatility as a bowling all-rounder also provides options.

However, Green is expected to be fit for the first Indian Test.

One remaining selection dilemma is whether to take a specialist back-up wicketkeeper in Josh Inglis.

There is a feeling Handscomb may be gambled on for that role, which is what happened back in 2017 when the Victorian provided cover for Matthew Wade as the only recognised keeper on tour.

Being the back-up wicketkeeper can be a double-edged sword, and Inglis has barely played any first-class cricket in the past two years because he’s been on the road as Alex Carey’s shadow.

Selectors may see benefit in leaving Inglis at home to get some much-needed first-class game time for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield instead of carrying the drinks for five weeks in India.

If Carey was to suffer an injury, they could easily get Inglis on a plane in quick time to be over there as a replacement.

But in the unlikely event Carey was to break a finger in the warm-up, at least Handscomb would be on hand to take the gloves in an emergency.

Handscomb performed well in Bangladesh back in 2017 and he provides a second batting back-up as well if Australia need to make changes in the back half of the four-match series.

Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood would likely be Australia’s first Test pace attack, unless Starc can recover in time to take his place alongside the captain.

Scott Boland is likely to tour as another fast bowling option – and should not be out of contention to play given accurate, stump-to-stump bowling was what drove Australia to success the last time they won in India back in 2004.

Glenn Maxwell is unlikely to be named in an initial squad, but could be available for the back-end of the Indian tour if Australia suddenly needed an extra batting-allrounder option.

SWING MEN AUSTRALIA MUST TAKE

Robert Craddock: I don’t agree with the theory that finger spinners are better in India given Indian leggie Anil Kumble took 350 wickets there. That’s why I haven’t given up on MITCH SWEPSON. He needs a cuddle - most leggies do - and a smart game plan but I still think he can work.

Daniel Cherny:PETER HANDSCOMB’S Sheffield Shield form has been excellent. His remodelled game appears more ready for international cricket. Handscomb has shown he can bat well in the subcontinent, making gritty knocks in Ranchi and Chittagong, while his wicketkeeping provides handy insurance for Alex Carey.

Ben Horne: Michael Kasprowicz, Jason Gillespie and Glenn McGrath were a tremendous three-way pace combination in 2004, barely bowling a bad over between them when Australia last climbed Everest and beat India in India. That is the sort of relentless pressure SCOTT BOLAND is capable of. He can grind away on a flat, featureless deck and has a big engine. Should not be discounted if conditions in a Test allow for three quicks.


AUSTRALIA POSSIBLE SQUAD

David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green*, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc*, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Matthew Renshaw, Peter Handscomb, Mitchell Swepson, Todd Murphy, Lance Morris
*(injury cloud)

[GVGjr]

Re: Tour of India speculation

I'm a little surprised that we haven't got Aaron Hardie in the mix but I think Murphy is a great potential selection.
Would we really take 4 spin bowlers and 5 pacemen and Green on top of that?

[Bornadog]

Re: Tour of India speculation

David Warner should not be included. Terrible form overseas.

[Sedat]

Re: Tour of India speculation

I'm a little surprised that we haven't got Aaron Hardie in the mix but I think Murphy is a great potential selection.
Would we really take 4 spin bowlers and 5 pacemen and Green on top of that?

If Sydney taught us anything we didn't already know, Agar is a waste of a spin position. He is a white ball specialist and has no place in our red ball set-up.

IMO Lyon, Swepson and Murphy is enough spin coverage for the tests, with support from Head/Smith/Labuschagne.

[GVGjr]

Re: Tour of India speculation

If Sydney taught us anything we didn't already know, Agar is a waste of a spin position. He is a white ball specialist and has no place in our red ball set-up.

IMO Lyon, Swepson and Murphy is enough spin coverage for the tests, with support from Head/Smith/Labuschagne.

I think one test where the the pitch didn't have the opportunity to wear like it should have is premature to judge Agar on and especially since he hasn't played any 4 day cricket. I do think Murphy could skip past him though a host of off spin bowlers might be overkill.

[jeemak]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Are we giving Agar an excuse by saying the pitch didn't wear enough, does that mean you're allowed to just bowl it wherever you like and flight it however you like?

[Happy Days]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Agar had one Shield wicket this season prior to the SCG test. One.

Mind blowing he was even considered.

[Axe Man]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Agar had one Shield wicket this season prior to the SCG test. One.

Mind blowing he was even considered.

Might as well have played Zampa off his first shield game in forever. At least he took 3 wickets.

Agar isn't close to one of our best spinners in first class cricket and shouldn't play test cricket again unless something changes.

Really Boland should have played instead of Agar, there was enough there for the quicks. If they were hellbent on playing a second spinner it should have been Swepson or Murphy.

[Sedat]

Re: Tour of India speculation

I think one test where the the pitch didn't have the opportunity to wear like it should have is premature to judge Agar on and especially since he hasn't played any 4 day cricket. I do think Murphy could skip past him though a host of off spin bowlers might be overkill.

Agar averages 40-odd at Shield level with the ball. He's just not up to it at first class level, let alone tests. He's a good asset in white ball cricket and that's where he belongs IMO.

[GVGjr]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Agar averages 40-odd at Shield level with the ball. He's just not up to it at first class level, let alone tests. He's a good asset in white ball cricket and that's where he belongs IMO.

I just think one test isn't a great reflection on what he might be able to achieve.
Murphy, Swepson and Kuhnemann might be in the mix to back up Lyon.

[Axe Man]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Agar averages 40-odd at Shield level with the ball. He's just not up to it at first class level, let alone tests. He's a good asset in white ball cricket and that's where he belongs IMO.

And since his last test in 2017 he's averaged 50 in first class cricket. There was really no good reason for his inclusion other than being a left armer.

[jeemak]

Re: Tour of India speculation

And since his last test in 2017 he's averaged 50 in first class cricket. There was really no good reason for his inclusion other than being a left armer.

Who apparently depended on bowling into the footmarks of a left hander who wasn't playing to have any success......

[lemmon]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Unless it's an absolute raging turner, I think I'd be trying to replicate the success of our 2004 tour with three front-line quicks and one specialist spinner. We just simply don't have a second spinner good enough to offset what we lose by dropping one of the three fast bowlers.

I think Head's bowling has improved as well. He took a few wickets in Sri Lanka and I think it's given him a boost.

Kuhnemann is a good shout but he's only played one Shield game this year. Think the lad needs to get away from Queensland and out of Swepson's shadow.

[Sedat]

Re: Tour of India speculation

Unless it's an absolute raging turner, I think I'd be trying to replicate the success of our 2004 tour with three front-line quicks and one spinner.

You'd imagine there will be some raging turners curated on this tour to blunt our pace attack weapons, so I think we need to have additional specialist spin reinforecements just in case. Murphy and Swepson are far better options than Agar IMO - only one of them should be selected on the big turning wickets to accompany Lyon, and probably only if Green is good to go so he can provide an additional seamer without losing batting depth. Agree that Head will be very handy on those turning decks - I reckon Labuschange could be a bit of a handful on occasions as well.

The Indians do play spin very well, but they can get routed from time to time - O'Keeffe took 12 wickets in a match on the last tour and he's not exactly Warne (or Lyon for that matter).

[GVGjr]

Re: Tour of India speculation

The Aussie spinners fighting for a ticket to India

Next up, India.

Following another undefeated home summer, Australia’s attention quickly turns to the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which has been in India’s possession for nearly six years.

It’s notoriously difficult to defeat India in their background; of their most recent 43 home Tests, they’ve lost two.

Notably, Australia doesn’t have any warm-up matches scheduled ahead of the first Test in Nagpur, so there’s an element of the unknown heading into the tour.

“It’s very hard when you’re going overseas, you don’t get the preparation to get used to the conditions,” former Australian captain Allan Border told foxsports.com.au.

“There’s no way they’ll prepare fast tracks. It just won’t happen.”

Pat Cummins and his comrades are heavy outsiders, but it’s no secret the key to success in India is spin; more than 63 per cent of Test wickets taken in India since 2010 have come from the tweakers.

Nathan Lyon, who toured India in 2013 and 2017, will be crucial to Australia’s success in the subcontinent next month, but the off-spinner needs support.

National selectors are reportedly considering flying four tweakers to India next week, and several candidates are hoping for a call-up.

ASHTON AGAR

Ashton Agar can safely assume he’ll be named in Australia’s Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, with Cummins all but confirming as much during Sunday’s post-match press conference in Sydney.

The West Australian ended a six-year hiatus from the Test side after he was picked for the New Year’s fixture against South Africa. He bowled 22 wicketless overs on the batting-friendly deck, giving the left-armer some valuable Test experience ahead of the India tour.

However, Agar’s first-class record is modest at best, averaging 42.21 with the ball after 64 matches, but he’s missed a lot of Sheffield Shield over the past couple of years due to international white-ball commitments.

Agar may not be the second-best spinner in the country, but his bowling action compliments that of Lyon, who turns the ball into the right-handed batters rather than away.

Border believes that Lyon and Agar are a “good combination” for India, because when bowling in tandem they threaten both edges of the bat.

“From my observations, finger spinners are more dangerous (than wrist spinners),” Border explained.

“You seem to have sharper, more variable spin when bowling finger spin.”

Agar’s status as an all-rounder also works in his favour. With three first-class centuries to his name, he’s capable of batting at No. 7 and providing valuable lower-order runs.

TODD MURPHY

Todd Murphy has been hailed as Nathan Lyon’s long-term replacement, with opponents and teammates singing his praises all summer.

The 22-year-old has snared 14 wickets at 17.71 in the Sheffield Shield this season, taking seven scalps against New South Wales to help Victoria clinch a remarkable victory at Junction Oval last month.

He also claimed 3-27 against the West Indies during November’s Prime Minister’s XI match at Canberra’s Manuka Oval.

“He’s as good an off-spinner I’ve seen since Nathan Lyon,” former Australian spinner Steve O’Keefe told foxsports.com.au.

“I think the ball comes out of his hand beautifully. He’s working on his variations, and he’s going to be a star for the Australian cricket team when the time comes.

“Every year he just seems to get a little bit better.”

During last year’s tour of Sri Lanka, Murphy took 4-52 from 19 overs while representing Australia A in just his third first-class match.

“Todd Murphy is the second-best spinner in the country,” former Australian spinner Kerry O‘Keeffe declared on Fox Cricket.

Being an off-spinner like Lyon, Murphy probably won’t make his international debut in Nagpur, but if Australia decides to play three tweakers at some stage in India, the spectacled tweaker could become the country’s 465th Test cricketer.

MITCHELL SWEPSON

After sliding in and out of the Australia Test squad for nearly five years, Mitchell Swepson finally got his opportunity in 2022, accompanying Lyon on tours of Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The Queenslander struggled on the lifeless subcontinent pitches, finishing the Pakistan series with bowling figures of 2-266, but redeemed himself in Sri Lanka, taking seven wickets in Galle to help Australia retain the Warne-Muralitharan Trophy.

However, the 29-year-old hasn’t been bashing down the door for a recall, taking 12 wickets at 39.66 in this season’s Sheffield Shield.

Unfortunately for Swepson, finger spin has been considerably more effective on Indian pitches over the past few years, with the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel wreaking havoc.

Even the late Shane Warne, the greatest wrist spinner in history, averaged 43.11 with the ball in India.

“Warnie in India tended to be high quality, but it was more consistent spin …. he was never at his absolute best bowling in Indian conditions, his record reflects that,” Border said.

“Loopy leg-spinners, I don’t think I’ve seen those sort of guys be successful … finger spin’s the go.

“I feel sorry for Mitch, because he bowls at the Gabba (in the Sheffield Shield). It’s a green wicket, and they play seamers. Some games he hardly bowls.

“It’s been a tough gig for him to really get that continuity of opportunity.”

Still, Swepson offers variation, and national selectors will give the 29-year-old a plane ticket to India if they want to ensure all bases are covered.

MATTHEW KUHNEMANN

A forgotten name in Australian cricket, Matthew Kuhnemann made his international debut in Sri Lanka last year, snaring six wickets in four ODIs.

It followed a successful Sheffield Shield campaign for the crafty tweaker, taking 25 wickets at 31.88 in seven matches. No spinner took more first-class scalps than the Queenslander during the 2021/22 summer.

Last month, Kuhnemann claimed 4-78 against South Africa in a warm-up match at Allan Border Field, rolling through the Proteas top-order in Brisbane.

Cricket Australia also sent Kuhnemann to the MRF Academy in Chennai last year, joining a group of emerging batters and spinners to refine their craft in the subcontinent.

Unfortunately for the 26-year-old, chances to push for Test selection have been limited. Swepson is Queensland’s first-choice tweaker, keeping Kuhnemann on the sidelines for most of the Sheffield Shield campaign.

The left-hander has only played one first-class match this summer, claiming 1-31 in 15 overs against Tasmania. National selectors would be reluctant to give Kuhnemann a maiden call-up purely because of a lack of overs.

“In our first-class system, all the pitches seem to be grassy, seaming pitches,” Border said.

“They don’t have the opportunity to bowl lots and lots over overs in first-class cricket.”

ADAM ZAMPA

He’s only played one first-class match in the last three years, but the lure of rushing Adam Zampa into the Test side is tempting.

The leg-spinner has been superb in Australia’s one-day side over the last couple of years, and he recently signalled his ambitions to play Test cricket.

“I feel like my game has evolved enough in the last few years. It’s just about seeing the workloads and how my body will cope really,” Zampa told Fox Cricket in November.

“I’d love to throw my hat in the ring.”

Zampa made his long-awaited return to the Sheffield Shield last month, taking 3-57 against Victoria at Junction Oval.

His consistency has come leaps and bounds since bursting onto the scene a decade ago, and Border is eager to see the New South Welshman ply his trade in Australian whites.

“I wouldn’t mind seeing Zampa,” Border said.

“I know he hasn’t played any red-ball cricket, which would be a bit of an odd selection.

“There’s something about Zampa, the way he’s developed over the last couple of seasons. He’s landing the ball well and his varieties are very, very good.”

Zampa also bowls faster and flatter than the traditional leggie, which Border highlighted as an essential quality for wrist spin in India, but whether he’s done enough to leapfrog Swepson in the pecking order remains to be seen.

TANVEER SANGHA

Much like Todd Murphy, Tanveer Sangha was earmarked as a future star of Australian cricket from an early age.

The leg-spinner earned his maiden national call-up in early 2021, named in Australia’s squad for a T20 tour of New Zealand at just 19 years old.

Sangha made his first-class debut for New South Wales later that year, ending the 2021/22 Sheffield Shield season with 17 wickets at 32.17.

“He’s a competitor – he goes out there and competes, even with the bat in his hand, he competes from ball one. He doesn’t give the opposition a sniff,” Blues captain Kurtis Patterson said earlier this summer.

“I have no doubt … he’ll play a lot of cricket for Australia if he keeps on the trajectory he’s on.”

Sangha turned heads during last year’s Australia tour of Sri Lanka, claiming 4-56 in the first red-ball match at Hambantota. He also featured in the MRF Academy expedition in Chennai last year.

Unfortunately, a lower back stress injury sidelined him for the first half of the 2022/23 summer; he hasn’t played a professional cricket match since August.

Had Sangha been fit and working his magic in the Sheffield Shield this summer, he was a decent chance of earning a maiden Test call-up next month.

PATRICK DOOLEY

This would be a surprise.

Patrick Dooley, who is without a state contract, became a cult hero after taking 4-16 against the Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League last month, with his unique bowling action proving popular with Hobart Hurricanes fans.

The 25-year-old is yet to make his first-class debut, but former Australian batter Mark Waugh is convinced the left-armer has shown enough promise to earn a plane ticket to India.

“I’m gonna throw in a real smokey here,” Waugh told Fox Cricket when asked about the Australian Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

“He’s playing for the Hurricanes at the moment. Left-arm helicopter, arms and legs everywhere. Patty Dooley.

“At the moment I reckon he’s about 80-1, but I think he could firm. I think there’s a bit of mystery about him. He’s got some tricks, which I think you’re gonna need against the Indian batsmen, and he bowls quite accurate. He bowls at the stumps, and he just does enough either way.

“I know it’s a really left-field selection, but it’s something the selectors may well think about.”

Former Australian tweaker Kerry O’Keeffe continued: “His angular release is the best angular release for a wrist spinner in Australia.”

Dooley has taken 12 wickets at 13.25 since making his T20 debut earlier this year, conceding just 6.36 runs per over.

However, an untimely shoulder injury meant that Dooley was sidelined for the Hurricanes’ match against the Melbourne Renegades on Saturday.

GLENN MAXWELL

Some Australian cricket fans scoff whenever Glenn Maxwell’s name is mentioned in Test selection debates, but the Victorian has plenty working in his favour.

Not only does he have prior Test cricket experience in Asia, but he scored a Test century in India six years ago.

Maxwell averages 43.68 with the bat in the Sheffield Shield, scoring four centuries and 19 fifties for Victoria since making his first-class debut in 2011.

The 34-year-old has not played first-class cricket since October 2019, with international commitments and the sport’s crammed schedule repeatedly preventing the right-hander from plying his trade in the Sheffield Shield.

He would have hoped to play some first-class cricket this summer to push his case for Test selection, but a freak leg injury after the T20 World Cup denied any chance of a Sheffield Shield return.

The talented all-rounder played the last of his seven Tests against Bangladesh in September 2017, but came agonisingly close to a long-awaited comeback during Australia’s recent Test tour of Sri Lanka.

Maxwell’s off-spin would have been handy in India as well, but the untimely leg injury heavily damaged his chances of another Test recall.