“Mitchell is a very exciting young leg-spinner who we think will benefit immensely from further experience in the sub-continent”
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Australia have called up uncapped leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson to their squad for the upcoming Test tour of Bangladesh, while pace bowler Jackson Bird has replaced fellow seamer James Pattinson.
Swepson’s addition to the side comes after left-arm seamer Mitchell Starc was ruled out of the series as he has not sufficiently recovered from a fractured foot.
Swepson, who has yet to play any form of international cricket, is the fourth spinner in Australia’s squad, with the other three being Nathan Lyon, Ashton Agar and Glenn Maxwell.
“We are comfortable with the fast-bowling stocks we have in the squad so have opted to add an additional spinner given the conditions we are likely to face in Bangladesh,” national selector Trevor Hohns said. “Mitchell is a very exciting young leg-spinner who we think will benefit immensely from further experience in the sub-continent.”
Meanwhile, Bird will bolster Australia’s pace attack, which also consists of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Hilton Cartwright.
Bird’s inclusion in the Test squad comes after Pattinson was diagnosed with inflammation in his back.
Given that Australia will be hosting an Ashes series against England in November, it was decided to give Pattinson adequate time to recover as he is likely to play an instrumental role in the highly-anticipated clash.
Australia will play a warm-up fixture on August 22 before the first Test begins on August 27 in Mirpur. The second Test, meanwhile, will be held in Chittagong on September 4.
Australia’s Test Squad: Steven Smith (capt), David Warner (vice-capt), Ashton Agar, Hilton Cartwright, Pat Cummins, Peter Handscomb, Matthew Wade (wk), Josh Hazlewood, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Renshaw, Mitchell Swepson, Jackson Bird