Captain Pat Cummins has confirmed Australia’s starting XI for the ODI series opener against Pakistan at the MCG, with rising star Jake Fraser-McGurk earning a recall.
The international home summer of cricket gets underway in the Victorian capital on Monday, with the reigning world champions facing Pakistan in the first of three ODIs.
Speaking to reporters at the iconic venue on Sunday morning, Cummins confirmed that young gun Fraser-McGurk would open the batting alongside Victoria’s Matthew Short for the first ODI in Melbourne. The 22-year-old has not played an ODI since February when he smacked a whirlwind 41 (18) against the West Indies at Canberra’s Manuka Oval.
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All-rounder Aaron Hardie also slots into the starting XI, while Sean Abbott gets a run in the absence of New South Wales teammate Josh Hazlewood, who is playing the ongoing Sheffield Shield match against Queensland in Sydney.
Australia is coming off a 3-2 ODI series victory against England in the United Kingdom, while Pakistan has not played 50-over cricket since last year’s World Cup in India.
Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh, who opened the batting against England in September, are unavailable for the Pakistan ODIs due to paternity leave.
The first ODI between Australia and Pakistan gets underway at the MCG on Monday at 2.30pm AEDT.
Australian XI for first ODI
Matthew Short, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Steve Smith, Josh Inglis (wk), Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Aaron Hardie, Pat Cummins (c), Sean Abbott, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa
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