Konstas, Peake, McSweeney named in Australia A squad for India tour

Melbourne: Sam Konstas and Nathan McSweeney have been named in Australia A squad for the two red-ball four-day matches against India A in September, with an eye towards Australia’s 2027 Test tour rather than the upcoming Ashes.

Teenage talent Oliver Peake and promising Victoria opener Campbell Kellaway have also been named in the squad. However, notable performers from the recent Australia A series against Sri Lanka A – Jake Weatherald, Jason Sangha and Kurtis Patterson – have missed out on selection.

Experienced openers with Test caps – Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft and Matt Renshaw – were also excluded. Renshaw has already toured India twice for Tests, while Bancroft previously impressed on an Australia A tour in 2015, scoring 150 against an India A side packed with nine Test players.

Performances during the September tour of India against India A are unlikely to influence Ashes selection, with national selectors having already stated that the first three rounds of the Sheffield Shield will carry the most weight. Instead, the Australia A squad appears to be chosen with a longer-term focus – providing younger players exposure to Indian conditions ahead of Australia’s five-Test tour in January-February 2027. By then, the makeup of Australia’s top six could look quite different, with Usman Khawaja unlikely to be playing and Steven Smith set to turn 38 in June that year.

“The subcontinent provides many unique challenges and the opportunity to utilise different skills with bat and ball,” chairman of selectors George Bailey said. “We hope repeated experiences in these conditions will assist players in developing an effective method and understanding of their game for future sub-continent tours.”

Test offspinner Todd Murphy, who claimed 14 wickets in four Tests during the 2023 India tour, including a seven-wicket haul on debut in Nagpur, has been named in the squad. He is joined by fellow offspinner Corey Rocchiccioli, who previously toured with Australia A and trained at the MRF Academy last year. Both missed the recent series against Sri Lanka A due to short county stints in England.

Left-arm spinning allrounder Cooper Connolly, who debuted in Tests in Sri Lanka earlier this year, will have the opportunity to further build his experience in subcontinent conditions. Seam-bowling allrounders Aaron Hardie, Liam Scott and Jack Edwards — the latter earning his maiden Australia A call-up — have also been selected.

Fast bowlers Lance Morris and Xavier Bartlett, both centrally contracted by Cricket Australia, have been included alongside Fergus O’Neill, the leading wicket-taker in the recent Sheffield Shield season. Josh Philippe is the only designated wicketkeeper in the four-day squad.

Connolly, Murphy, Hardie, Edwards, and Scott will remain with the squad for the three-match 50-over series while Bartlett, Kellaway, Konstas, McSweeney, Morris, O’Neill, Peake, Philippe, and Rocchiccioli are set to feature only in the two four-day games in Lucknow before heading back to Australia for the opening round of the Sheffield Shield, beginning on October 4.

Fraser-McGurk earned a spot in the squad after being dropped from Australia’s ODI side and could be handed wicketkeeping duties for the first time in his List A career, with Shaw being the only other designated keeper in the white-ball squad. He has been groomed as a back-up wicketkeeper for the T20I setup, having worked closely with Australia’s fielding and keeping coach, Andre Borovec on recent tours.

While captains are yet to be announced, there is no shortage of leadership options. The touring group includes three current state skippers – McSweeney, Edwards and Sutherland – while Hardie has previous captaincy experience with Australia A in New Zealand and has led the Perth Scorchers in the BBL.

“For many of these players we remain interested in the development of their short-form cricket as well, but balancing out priorities meant we wanted them back and available for the start of the Sheffield Shield season. This provides opportunities for Harry Dixon, Sam Elliott, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Mackenzie Harvey, Tanveer Sangha, Lachie Shaw, Tom Straker, Will Sutherland and Callum Vidler who will play the one-day matches in Kanpur,” Bailey said.

Australia A four-day squad: Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Jack Edwards, Aaron Hardie, Campbell Kellaway, Sam Konstas, Nathan McSweeney, Lance Morris, Todd Murphy, Fergus O’Neill, Oliver Peake, Josh Philippe, Corey Rocchiccioli, Liam Scott.

Australia A one-day squad: Cooper Connolly, Harry Dixon, Jack Edwards, Sam Elliott, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Mackenzie Harvey, Todd Murphy, Tanveer Sangha, Liam Scott, Lachie Shaw, Tom Straker, Will Sutherland, Callum Vidler.

IANS