We have Green, Starc back on selection table: Australia coach McDonald on changes for 2nd Test
Feb 12, 2023
New Delhi [India], February 12 : Australia head coach Andrew McDonald informed that key players Cameron Green and Mitchell Strac are available for selection but won't be rushed into being drafted into the playing eleven for the second test against India in the Border Gavaskar Trophy.
"Will there be changes? Potentially, we have Green and Starc back on the selection table so that will totally change the balance of how we want to go about things. However, we feel as though when we came here we had a clear vision of how to play, and how we want to go about it and we need to reinvest into that," McDonald said.
Green suffered a broken finger against South Africa during the Melbourne Test in December while Starc also sustained a finger injury at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) and has been bowling with protection in practice, but will be not permitted to do so during a game.
Australia will be looking to make a comeback in the series with a win in the second Test.
The hosts registered a thumping victory in the first test. A five-wicket haul by Ravichandran Ashwin combined with the all-round performance by Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel helped India clinch victory by an inning and 132 runs within three days of the first Test at Nagpur.
"If you feel your preparation was good and the way you want to go about it is good then you re-commit to that. If you shift and try to change too much that's when you get lost as a touring team. We've seen teams come to Australia and try to do the same. We need to be committed to what we want to achieve. We feel it can work and the players within the changeroom are capable of the challenges ahead. We had a slight setback in the first Test match, we got behind in the game. We clearly know where we need to improve. If we improve those areas the margins will narrow very quickly," concluded the head coach as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Australia is debating whether to make changes for the second Test, with Queensland left-arm spinner Matthew Kuhnemann travelling in to join the squad in Delhi as Mitchell Swepson returns home for the birth of his first child.
Mitchell Starc, who arrived in Delhi yesterday, is also expected to be available. Cameron Green is striving to play the second Test, but it may be a stretch as he recovers from a fractured finger, while Josh Hazlewood is still out with an Achilles injury.
However, McDonald was hesitant to make drastic adjustments following a single setback.
