Cameron Green, skipper Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, three key players have returned to Australia's 15-member squad for the World Test Championship Final to be played at Lord's in London from June 11.
Cummins and Hazlewood missed Australia's most recent Test series in Sri Lanka due to injury, while Green is in line to make his first Test appearance in more than 12 months after recovering from back surgery.
The trio all return to the Aussies squad for next month's one-off final at Lord's, where Australia will be aiming to defend the World Test Championship mace they won at The Oval against India in 2023.
Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland and Hazlewood along with Cummins will form the pace attack in an Australian squad full of experience and at full strength for the clash with South Africa. Australia is hoping to become the first nation to win multiple titles in the World Test Championship.
Spinner Matt Kuhnemann also finds a place in the squad while Beau Webster has been retained as the preferred allrounder following a strong start to his Test career. Also back in the squad is Sam Konstas after he left the tour of Sri Lanka early to finish the domestic season with New South Wales.
Kuhnemann's inclusion appears to have seen him leapfrog Victorian Todd Murphy as Nathan Lyon's backup. Brendan Doggett has been named as a travelling reserve for the 15-player squad that otherwise features no major surprises from outside the group that beat Sri Lanka 2-0 and India 3-1 last summer.
We are fortunate and looking forward to having Pat (Cummins), Josh (Hazlewood) and Cam (Green) back in the squad. The team finished the WTC cycle with an impressive series victory in Sri Lanka, following an equally strong summer in defeating India for the first time in a decade.
“Those series capped a consistent performance across the two-year cycle and now present us with the incredibly exciting opportunity to defend the World Test Championship. It means a lot to the group to reach the final, and they are very much looking forward to the challenge South Africa will present at Lord’s."
Meanwhile, some key members of the squad, including Cummins, Hazlewood, Starc, and Josh Inglis will be returning to India to represent their respective franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, which is scheduled to resume on May 17 after a week-long hiatus because of the armed conflict between Indian and Pakistan.
Because of the delay, the IPL 2025 will now end on June 3, just a week before the start of the WTC Final. This may have an impact on the players' preparations if their IPL teams reach the playoffs and the final. Cricket Australia has left it for the players to decide whether they want to return to India to join IPL 2025.
Cricket Australia will support players in their individual decisions whether to return to India or not.
"We are maintaining communication with the Australian Government and BCCI around security arrangements and safety," it said.
Regarding the players picked in the WTC Final squad and who decide to play in the IPL, Cricket Australia has left it to the team management to coordinate with the players regarding their preparations for the WTC final.
Team management will work through the preparation implications for the World Test Championship final for those players who choose to play in the remaining IPL matches.
Australia Squad for WTC Final: Pat Cummins (captain), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster. Travelling reserve: Brendan Doggett.
