Three years after his illustrious Test debut, Jhye Richardson returns to the Test scene as Australia confirmed their playing XI for the pink-ball Test, starting from December 16 in Adelaide. He pips over teammates Michael Neser for the second tie as injured Josh Hazlewood’s replacement.
Richardson has spent much of his time away from the Test arena recovering from a serious shoulder dislocation and resultant surgeries. The 25-year-old made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in early 2019, and took five wickets in his maiden outing but injured his right shoulder in a fielding mishap in the UAE later that year as Australia prepared for their ICC World Cup campaign.
The Aussie quicks had the pink ball doing plenty in the Adelaide nets! Just wait until the end…#Ashes | @alintaenergy pic.twitter.com/FpZy6gFIb9
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 14, 2021
On the other hand, opener David Warner was also declared fit to play. Although Pat Cummins agreed that the southpaw had a little discomfort but will be oozing with confidence to get going in the pink-ball Test.
“He’ll be right,” Cummins told reporters today. “He had a bat yesterday, batted with a bit of discomfort but knowing Davey, he’s not going to miss this one. Once adrenaline and everything kicks in, (he’ll be) a little bit sore but he’ll be fine.
“It’s one thing batting in the nets but another thing when you walk out and it’s a packed crowd. I don’t think he had any kind of painkillers or anything yesterday. He’s played close to 90 Tests, I’m sure a lot of them have been played in discomfort or with (niggles) going into the game. He’ll be fine tomorrow,” Cummins added.
Meanwhile, Usman Khawaja, who was in blazing hot form leading up to the Ashes continue to warm the benches after Travis Head superlative returns in the first Test at the Gabba where he was adjudged the player of the match.
Australia squad for 2nd Test: Marcus Harris, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (c), Mitch Starc, Nathan Lyon, Jhye Richardson
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