Australia have opted to manage the workload of their leading pace trio—Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood—by keeping them out of the upcoming white-ball assignments in Pakistan and Bangladesh. With an eye on next year’s T20 World Cup, selectors have turned to a group of younger, comparatively less seasoned players as the squad continues building depth and match readiness.
Why Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood are missing
The main reason behind the decision is workload management. Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood have recently returned from injury setbacks during the IPL, and the current plan is to let them focus on preparations for Australia’s next major home assignment—a two-Test series against Bangladesh later this year.
- Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood are rested from the Pakistan and Bangladesh white-ball tour.
- The move is driven by workload considerations after each of them returned from injuries during the IPL.
- They will instead concentrate on getting ready for Australia’s upcoming two-Test home series versus Bangladesh later in the year.
Captain, call-ups and changes across formats
Mitchell Marsh will lead Australia throughout the tour. The ODI and T20I groups include fresh faces, with Ollie Peake earning a spot after captaining Australia’s Under-19 World Cup team, and Liam Scott named as an uncapped all-rounder. Riley Meredith and Billy Stanlake have also been recalled to the squad.
For the Bangladesh T20I leg, Glenn Maxwell has been left out of the team. Joel Davies, meanwhile, received his maiden call-up for the shortest format series.
- Mitchell Marsh will captain Australia for the entire tour.
- Ollie Peake has been called up after leading Australia’s Under-19 World Cup side.
- Liam Scott joins as an uncapped all-rounder.
- Riley Meredith and Billy Stanlake return to the setup.
- Glenn Maxwell is left out of the T20I squad for Bangladesh.
- Joel Davies earns his first international call-up in the T20I squad.
IPL final clash and potential late arrivals
Australia’s involvement in the IPL playoffs could also affect player availability for the Pakistan ODI portion. The IPL final is set for May 31, which overlaps with the tour window. Because of this, several players are expected to join Australia’s squad later once their IPL commitments end.
Travis Head, Cooper Connolly, Xavier Bartlett and Ben Dwarshuis are among the names anticipated to travel after their respective IPL campaigns conclude. Matthew Short will remain part of the Pakistan ODI squad, but he will not make the trip to Bangladesh.
- The IPL final on May 31 clashes with the tour schedule, potentially impacting availability for the Pakistan ODIs.
- Travis Head, Cooper Connolly, Xavier Bartlett and Ben Dwarshuis are expected to join once their IPL campaigns finish.
- Matthew Short stays in the Pakistan ODI squad but will not travel to Bangladesh.
Australia squads and series schedule
Australia ODI squad for Pakistan
- Mitchell Marsh (c)
- Alex Carey
- Nathan Ellis
- Cameron Green
- Josh Inglis
- Matthew Kuhnemann
- Marnus Labuschagne
- Riley Meredith
- Oliver Peake
- Matthew Renshaw
- Tanveer Sangha
- Liam Scott
- Matt Short
- Billy Stanlake
- Adam Zampa
Australia ODI squad for Bangladesh
- Mitchell Marsh (c)
- Xavier Bartlett
- Alex Carey
- Cooper Connolly
- Ben Dwarshuis
- Nathan Ellis
- Cameron Green
- Travis Head
- Josh Inglis
- Matthew Kuhnemann
- Marnus Labuschagne
- Matthew Renshaw
- Tanveer Sangha
- Liam Scott
- Adam Zampa
Australia T20I squad for Bangladesh
- Mitchell Marsh (c)
- Xavier Bartlett
- Cooper Connolly
- Tim David
- Joel Davies
- Nathan Ellis
- Cameron Green
- Aaron Hardie
- Travis Head
- Josh Inglis
- Spencer Johnson
- Matthew Kuhnemann
- Riley Meredith
- Josh Philippe
- Matthew Renshaw
- Adam Zampa
Pakistan series schedule (ODIs)
- First ODI: May 30, Rawalpindi
- Second ODI: June 2, Lahore
- Third ODI: June 4, Lahore
Bangladesh series schedule (ODIs and T20Is)
- First ODI: June 9, Dhaka
- Second ODI: June 11, Dhaka
- Third ODI: June 14, Dhaka
- First T20I: June 17, Chattogram
- Second T20I: June 19, Chattogram
- Third T20I: June 21, Chattogram
The tour is also seen as an opportunity to test younger players, strengthen Australia’s squad depth, and prepare for upcoming major international tournaments.
