Steve Smith said the decision to drop Nathan Lyonwas taken to strengthen the pace-bowling department.
Captain Pat Cummins and spinner Nathan Lyon have returned to the Australia XI for the third Ashes Test against England in Adelaide.
Cricket Australia has announced its contracted player list for 2026/27, with some notable changes including the omission of Glenn Maxwell and Sam Konstas, and the inclusion of Brendan Doggett.
Spinner Todd Murphy has been called into the Australia squad in place of the injured Nathan Lyon for this week's fourth Ashes Test, while captain Pat Cummins will skip the rest of the series as his back issue is managed.
Regular captain Pat Cummins was named in the Australia squad on Wednesday for the third Ashes Test against England, a strong indication that the inspirational fast bowler will see his first action of the series in Adelaide next week.
Opening batter Jake Weatherald and pace bowler Brendan Doggett will make their Test debuts for Australia in the first Ashes Test against England in Perth on Friday.
Steve Smith returns to action in the Boxing Day Test against England as Australia opted to include four fast bowlers in their 12-man squad.
Cummins has been sidelined with a lumbar stress injury since Australia swept West Indies in the Caribbean in July.
Australia may opt to continue with a four-prong pace attack at Adelaide and even add another part-time seamer in all-rounder Beau Webster, who could replace batter Josh Inglis in the lower middle order.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 1st Ashes Test played in Perth on Friday.
The Ashes could be decided within days at an Adelaide Oval furnace where England's hopes of wresting back the urn will fire anew or flame out entirely against a strengthened Australia.
Scott Boland will step up and uncapped Brendan Doggett is tipped for a high-stakes debut to try to shore up the loss of a combined 604 Test wickets of experience.
The Perth Stadium curator has promised the wicket will be green, fast and bouncy but Stokes offered no thoughts on whether England would attack with four quicks or pick the specialist spinner, Shoaib Bashir, in their 11.
Australia captain Steve Smith has declined to rule out a surprise return for fast bowler Pat Cummins for the second Ashes Test against England.
Konstas, 20, misses out after a poor tour with the bat in the West Indies, while Weatherald has been included after topping the Sheffield Shield runs list
'That so many have reached such an advanced stage of their careers without obvious replacements is certainly a reflection of their quality, but will be a matter of concern in the case of more injuries during the series.'
Australia stormed to an eight-wicket victory in the second Ashes Test on Sunday to take a 2-0 series lead as England succumbed on day four to a pace blitz from unlikely hero Michael Neser.
Bazball is in the firing line, with former players and pundits decrying the high-risk game on Australia's spicy pitches.
IMAGES from Day 2 of the 1st Ashes Test in Perth on Saturday.
Skipper Pat Cummins, who missed the tour of Sri Lanka due to the birth of his second child in February and was also ruled out of the Champions Trophy campaign with an ankle injury, will take the reins against South Africa.
But the man known as "Gazza" to his team mates has become much more than a sum of his statistics, and seems to add a new string to his bow every season.
Australia named five uncapped players in a raw tour squad to play Pakistan in a Test series in the United Arab Emirates, while recalling pace veteran Peter Siddle for the first time in two years and dropping middle order batsman Peter Handscomb.
Images from soccer matches played across different leagues in Europe on Sunday
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field.
Australia pick two uncapped players for first two Tests
Pakistan-born leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed was named an Australian citizen on Tuesday, clearing the final procedural hurdle for his selection for the Ashes series against England starting on July 10.
Whatever Karim Benzema does in a Real Madrid shirt his achievements are generally overshadowed by the exploits of Cristiano Ronaldo yet the France forward has a splendid Champions League record of his own.
Players with the maximum work load in 2015.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
Barcelona look well set to wrap up the La Liga title.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
IPL Action VIII: These players went unsold
