Australia made two changes to their T20 World Cup squad on Saturday (January 31).
Pat Cummins ruled out of T20 World Cup
Australia announced a provisional 15-member squad for the tournament on January 1, in which quicks Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and middle-order batter Tim David had all been named, even as they continued to recover from injury. At the time, chief selector George Bailey said the trio were "tracking well", and that the selectors were confident they would be available for the tournament.
Participating teams were allowed to make changes to their squad by January 31, and Australia have now made two, the most significant being the replacement of Cummins with left-arm quick Ben Dwarshuis. Dwarshuis took 16 wickets at 18.81, and an economy rate under eight an over in the recently-completed Big Bash League.
Also read: Predicted: England's 2026 T20 World Cup starting XI
"With Pat needing more time to recover from his back injury, Ben is a ready replacement who offers a left-arm-pace option as well as dynamic fielding and late-order hitting," said Australia selector Tony Dodemaide, as reported by ESPNCricinfo.
Hazlewood and David remain part of the World Cup squad, even though neither one made it to the group that has travelled to Pakistan for three T20Is before the tournament.
The other change has seen top-order batter Matthew Short replaced by Matthew Renshaw, with Dodemaide saying Renshaw added more middle-order support as David's return-to-play programme would be completed in the early stages of the World Cup.
The 2021 champions have retained just the one wicketkeeping option in the squad in the form of Josh Inglis. However, coach Matthew Wade, still active in the BBL, has been floated as an emergency option should injury befall Inglis. Bailey also admitted when the provisional squad was announced that all-rounder Glenn Maxwell was "one of the possibilities" to take up the big gloves in a pinch.
Australia squad for 2026 T20 World Cup
Batters: Mitchell Marsh (c), Tim David, Travis Head, Matthew Renshaw.
Wicketkeepers: Josh Inglis.
All-rounders: Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis.
Bowlers: Xavier Bartlettt, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Josh Hazlewood, Matthew Kuhnemann, Adam Zampa.
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