Australia‘s playing squad for the first ODI against England has been further reduced as Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood are doubtful due to illness. Medical staff are addressing a virus affecting the team, which has already sidelined captain Mitch Marsh during the previous T20 match.
Starc and Maxwell joined the squad recently after missing the T20 series but fell ill after a training session. Meanwhile, Josh Inglis and Jake Fraser-McGurk are also dealing with injuries, leaving Australia with limited options in their 17-player squad.
Inglis has not batted or kept during training due to quad soreness, potentially allowing Alex Carey to play his first ODI since last year’s World Cup. Fraser-McGurk is recovering from a hamstring issue but managed a batting session before the match.
Sean Abbott and Ben Dwarshuis are expected to play, with allrounders Cameron Green and Aaron Hardie likely filling out the pace attack. Matt Short is poised to replace Maxwell if needed.
The visitors have 19-year-old Mahli Beardman on standby, though he only arrived in the UK on Tuesday morning after a 24-hour journey from Perth and did not bowl during the training session before the match.
Mitch Marsh and Travis Head have both recovered and will be included in the XI as Australia aims for a 13th consecutive ODI victory.
Australia was already planning to rotate their star quicks during the series, which features five matches in just 11 days.
“It’s certainly a busy schedule; there will be times where we may have to manage guys through,” Marsh said at a pre-series press conference before the full impact of the illness was known.
“We’ll manage that as best we can and make sure we’re fielding teams to win this series.”
Marsh also confirmed that leg-spinner Adam Zampa will play his 100th one-day international on Thursday, making him the 32nd Australian man to reach this milestone.
This is the second consecutive match in which Australia has had a reduced squad due to Marsh’s illness, Hazlewood being managed carefully as he recovers from a calf injury, and injuries to Xavier Bartlett and Riley Meredith.
As a result, they had only 11 players available for the second T20 in Cardiff, fielding an attack with just two specialist bowlers (Zampa and Abbott).
Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne are also expected to join the XI for series opener.
Australia ODI squad: Mitch Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa. Reserve: Mahli Beardman
September 19: First ODI v England, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 9.30pm AEST
September 21: Second ODI v England, Headingley, Leeds, 8pm AEST
September 24: Third ODI v England, Riverside, Chester-le-Street, 9.30pm AEST
September 27: Fourth ODI v England, Lord’s, London, 9.30pm AEST
September 29: Fifth ODI v England, County Ground, Bristol, 8pm AEST
