Australia name a spin heavy squad for the tour of India

Cricket Australia today announced a 16-man Australian Test squad for the tour of India where they will be playing four Test matches against the No.1 Test team. The selectors have recalled allrounder Glenn Maxwell in the team given his experience of having played in the subcontinent and the additional spin bowling that he gives to the skipper.

They have clearly tried to give the spin bowling department as much muscle as they could and along with Nathan Lyon and Stephen O’Keefe named uncapped leg-spinner Mitch Swepson, slow left-arm bowler Ashton Agar these four along with Maxwell makes it as many as five spinners in their ranks for the series.

Left-hand batsman Shaun Marsh will also make a comeback to the team having recovered from a surgery over his fractured finger that he suffered during the series against South Africa in November 2016. His brother Mitchell Marsh has been picked as well as the seam bowling allrounder of the team which will give them the luxury to play an additional spinner depending on the pitch and conditions.

After naming the team Trevor Hohns the interim chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns said that they had given due thought on leg-spinner Adam Zampa but in their view, Swepson was a better wicket-taking prospect and thus went ahead with him. “We thought a leg-spinner would be handy to have over there, whether they play or not is in the lap of the gods at the moment,” Hohns was quoted on cricket.co.au as saying.

Also read- India vs England ODI series, 2017 – Statistical Preview

“We thought we would go for a more attacking leg-spinner more so than a defensive spinner. That’s no disrespect to Adam. Adam is going well as well.

“Mitchell Swepson has come through the pathway system. He is an exciting young leg-spinner, gives the ball a very good rip, he’s a wicket-taking leg-spinner.

“At the end of the day you’ve got to take wickets to win Test matches. Given the opportunity we feel he could play a part over there and if he doesn’t he’ll gain a lot from the experience from being there.”

He admitted that they need a flexible lineup that can adapt even to the unexpected challenges coming their way in the subcontinent and that is the key to get the better of the No.1 Test team. “We don’t know what pitch conditions we will come up against in each of the venues but wanted to have flexibility and options available to us,” Hohns said.

“We know India is an incredibly tough place to tour and have success in, with most International teams struggling to adapt to the conditions, but we have chosen a squad which we believe will work really hard in its endeavours to perform well and give a good account of itself in the subcontinent.

“We expect all of the young players chosen to benefit immensely from the experience.”

“(Agar) is a good left-arm orthodox spinner who can be very exciting with the bat and also fields extremely well. He provides us with a great all-round package.”

“Shaun (Marsh) is proven in subcontinent conditions and is coming off a hundred in his last Test match in Sri Lanka. He is a very versatile batsman who can slot in at the top or the middle of the order.”

Australian Squad for India tour:

Steve Smith (C), David Warner (vc), Ashton Agar, Jackson Bird, Peter Handscomb, Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Stephen O’Keefe, Matthew Renshaw, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade

The four-match Test series will get under way with the 1st Test on February 23 at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.