Less than 24 hours left for the start of the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Before the Test match to be played at the Optus Stadium in Perth, all eyes are on India’s playing XI, regarding which many speculations are being made. All-rounders Nitish Reddy and Harshit Rana are predicted to make their debut in the first Test. However, for this we will have to wait for the morning of 22nd November. Although everyone is waiting for India’s playing XI, Australia’s line-up cannot be ignored either. After the retirement of David Warner, the Kangaroos are looking for a strong opener. Steve Smith was tried as Warner’s replacement but to no avail. Thus Smith had to return to number 4 again. This left Australia’s opening slot vacant, where 25-year-old all-rounder Nathan McSweeney is now certain to get a chance.
The young player will make his debut
Nathan McSweeney recently scored 166 runs at an average of 55 in 4 innings of 2 unofficial Test matches against India A. He was the highest run scorer in the series. It will now be interesting to see how Nathan fares against bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj during his debut Test in Perth. The biggest burden of Australia’s batting will fall on the middle order which is very strong.
Solid middle order
The middle order has dangerous batsmen like Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh which can be a cause of concern for the Indian bowlers. Travis Head could be the biggest threat for India in this, as he was brilliant against India in 2 ICC finals last year. At the same time, Alex Carey has managed to establish himself in the team as a wicketkeeper-batsman, thanks to his excellent form in the Sheffield Shield. Captain Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood will have the responsibility of fast bowling while Nathan Lyon will handle the spin.
Australia’s Probable Playing XI for Perth Test against India: Nathan McSweeney, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Lebusch, Steve Smith, Mitchell Marsh, Travis Head, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
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