Ponting and Hussey’s retirement has left a huge void in Australia’s middle order

The retirement of veteran batting pair Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey has hit Australia hard and at a crucial time, where they will be under serious pressure to regain the Ashes from arch-rivals England after failing to do so on the previous two occasions.

With the experienced duo having moved on after thanking the cricketing world for all their support, Cricket Australia and the national selectors believe batsman Phillip Hughes could be Ponting’s long-term replacement, while the battle for Hussey’s spot has become increasingly intense, with batsman Usman Khawaja and all-rounder Glenn Maxwell having emerged as the two frontrunners who are both vying for the opportunity to prove their worth.

With the back-to-back Ashes series just around the corner, many cricket pundits and former players believe that Australia have to decide who will make up their main XI by the end of their tour to India later this month since the country does not want a repeat of what happened after McGrath, opener Justin Langer and leg-spinner Shane Warne announced their retirements in 2007.

However, McGrath is confident that the youngsters being given the chance to represent Australia will do an excellent job and will look to cement their places in the squad as well.

McGrath also noted that captain Michael Clarke was doing an outstanding job in managing all the youngsters in the team, especially after a lot of them succumbed to long-term injuries last year.