The Australian selectors’ hands have been forced as they met for an unplanned selection meeting ahead of the AUS vs BAN 2nd Test following the shock defeat in the first Test.
Pat Cummins’ team is scheduled to play an unprecedented 20 Test matches in a space of 12 months, which will be followed by a 14-team ODI World Cup 2027.
Hosting Bangladesh in Test cricket for the first time since 2003, the hosts were expected to rout the visitors in the two-Test series. However, a nine-wicket defeat in the 1st Test in Darwin means Australia are now on the brink of what could potentially be an embarrassing home series defeat to Bangladesh.
Whether that dream of the Bangladeshis materializes or the Kangaroos storm back will be decided in the coming days, with the second Test set to commence on Saturday in Mackay.
For now, the fact that the Aussie selectors have dropped a batsman whom they had backed until a week ago is enough evidence of the shockwaves that the loss in Darwin has caused in Australian cricket.
AUS vs BAN: Jake Weatherald dropped, Marnus Labuschagne retained, Matt Renshaw recalled for 2nd Test
Australia have dropped opener Jake Weatherald from their squad for the 2nd Test, and Matt Renshaw, who last played a Test match in February 2023, has been recalled, while Marnus Labuschagne has been backed for one more Test.
Weatherald made his Test debut last year in the Ashes but averages only 20 in six Test matches, with only one half-century to show.
Weatherald made changes to his technique after an underwhelming Ashes series, where he was repeatedly dismissed lbw. But this change of method meant he became vulnerable outside the off-stump, which Bangladesh exploited in Darwin.
Renshaw is set for a comeback in the Australian Test XI in the AUS vs BAN 2nd Test after more than three years. The left-hander made his Test debut in 2016 but only has 14 Test caps. The 30-year-old Renshaw is said to be at his peak, having averaged almost 50 in last season’s Sheffield Shield.
Meanwhile, Labuschagne’s rope has gotten shorter now with the defeat to Bangladesh. Though he’s been retained in the squad, it seems difficult that he would be able to find a place in the squad for the South Africa series if he doesn’t put up a noticeable performance in Mackay.
Labuschagne averages only 22 in his last 10 Test matches, and the right-hander hasn’t hit a Test century since July 2023.
For the Australia vs Bangladesh 2nd Test, the hosts will certainly make one change: Renshaw in for Weatherald. Apart from that, it’s unlikely that Australia will tinker with their lineup, unless one of the fast bowlers is rested. In that case, Scott Boland would come in.
AUS vs BAN: Australia Playing XI for 2nd Test – Predicted
Pat Cummins (C), Travis Head, Matt Renshaw, Cameron Green, Marnus Labuschagne, Steven Smith, Alex Carey (wk), Beau Webster, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc
When is the Australia vs Bangladesh 2nd Test match?
The 2nd Test of the Australia vs Bangladesh series will kick off on Saturday, August 22, and it will be played at the Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay.
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