Australia’s preparations for their upcoming T20I series against New Zealand have been disrupted after wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis was ruled out with a right calf strain. Inglis felt discomfort following a running session in Perth, and scans confirmed the injury, ruling him out of all three matches at Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui, scheduled from October 1 to 4.
Inglis’s place, selectors have named Alex Carey as his replacement. Carey, who was due to represent South Australia in the Sheffield Shield opener against Western Australia on October 4, will now join the national squad and assume wicketkeeping responsibilities.
“It’s an ongoing thing. It’s sort of been around for a couple years now. For me, it’s been really frustrating. It’s not been something that’s really kept me out of the game,” Inglis was quoted as saying to ESPNcricinfo.
“It’s just something I’ve got to manage. So at the minute, I’m not really able to bat as much as I’d like, so I’m not able to spend the time in the nets to be able to work on new things,” Inglis added.
Australia Faces Injury Challenges Ahead Of New Zealand T20Is
Australia is already facing the challenge of missing several key players ahead of the series. Test captain Pat Cummins is out with a lumbar bone stress injury, all-rounder Cameron Green has been rested to concentrate on Sheffield Shield cricket ahead of the Ashes, and pacer Nathan Ellis has pulled out for personal reasons.
With Josh Inglis now also unavailable, the burden increases on captain Mitchell Marsh and senior players such as Glenn Maxwell, Travis Head, and Marcus Stoinis as Australia looks to finalize their combinations ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Australia T20I squad vs New Zealand
Mitchell Marsh (capt), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa
New Zealand vs Australia T20I series schedule
1st T20I: Wednesday, 1 October 2025, 11:45 AM IST – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
2nd T20I: Friday, 3 October 2025, 11:45 AM IST – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
3rd T20I: Saturday, 4 October 2025, 11:45 AM IST – Bay Oval, Mount Maunganui
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