Australia head coach and selector Andrew McDonald has confirmed Usman Khawaja will play in the fifth Ashes Test against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground amid media speculation it could be his last international.
Cricket Australia were left millions of dollars out of pocket, having to refund tickets for a confirmed sell-out crowd on day three at the 100,000-seat stadium and for another large crowd for day four.
Steve Smith and Travis Head hit centuries to help Australia dominate the third day's play by stretching their lead against England in the fifth and final Ashes Test.
No fewer than 36 wickets fell during two chaotic days in the fourth Ashes Test, leaving the captains of both Australia and England unimpressed with the Melbourne Cricket Ground pitch.
'They're those little moments as a squad that I think have got us across the line to four wins this series.'
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.
England opener Zak Crawley said Australia had shown why they were favourites coming into the Ashes after a tough day four at Adelaide Oval left the tourists staring down the barrel of a series defeat on Saturday.
Kasprowicz recalls being thanked "for saving Test cricket" for his Ashes 2005 Birmingham dismissal
'We've just got to stand up in them certain situations, read the game slightly better (and) just have a little bit of grit and determination about you.'
Less than two weeks after being dismissed as a "dud" Down Under, Joe Root finally shrugged the monkey off his back with a first Test century in Australia on Thursday to breathe life into England's Ashes campaign.
Following eight-wicket defeats in Perth and Brisbane, the England camp took a break in Noosa, with reports in British and Australian media saying the players were drinking throughout their time in the holiday hotspot.
Australia paceman Josh Hazlewood's hopes of playing in the third Ashes Test in Adelaide have dimmed after he suffered a new injury setback during his recovery from a hamstring strain.
IMAGES from Day 1 of the 1st Ashes Test played in Perth on Friday.
With skipper Pat Cummins already out of the series opener because of a back injury, Australia are expected to send out Hazlewood with Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland as their pace attack.
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.
England Head Coach Brendon McCullum revealed his team may have been victims of their own thoroughness, conducting "five to 10 training sessions" in the extended break between Tests after losing the opener in Perth inside two days.
A versatile and dynamic Australian unit, without key pacer Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, who is likely to miss the early stages of the tournament, will be going into the T20 World Cup with hopes of going deep in the tournament.
'In choosing to be fully himself, even when it was uncomfortable, Usman Khawaja expanded the meaning of representation and conscience in Australian sport,' notes Asif Ullah Khan.
The ICC's rating is presumably due to the uneven bounce that became more prevalent later in the recently-concluded second Test between Australia and India.
Can the young trio of Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Akash Deep leave a mark in the Border Gavaskar Trophy series?
Mark Wood, who was one of England's standout bowlers in the 2021-22 series when he claimed 17 wickets, had been sidelined since February due to a knee injury and was hoping to build up match fitness in this week's warm-up match ahead of the Ashes.
The overwhelmingly bowler-friendly Melbourne pitch on which 20 wickets fell on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test has prompted Kevin Pietersen and Dinesh Kartik to point out the selective criticism of Indian tracks when spinners get wickets in a heap.
Noman collected a 10-wicket haul during Pakistan's 93-run triumph over South Africa in Lahore recently and moved up four places.
Jasprit Bumrah, who captained India in Perth, returned with excellent match figures of 8/72 as India crushed Australia by 295 runs.
'I think it's a huge credit to (head coach) Andrew McDonald, the coaching staff and the medical staff that we feel like we've got a big squad that we can draw on.'
Smith will lead the Aussies for the Ashes opener in Perth.
'We thought he'd play a huge part in the series. But really feel for him that he won't get that opportunity.'
Taking his 17th Test five-wicket haul, he finished with 7 for 58 off 12.5 overs.
Starc eclipsed Pakistan legend Wasim Akram's tally of 414 wickets to become the most successful left-arm pacer in the longest format.
The stand-in Australia captain was asked about Panesar's recent comments that England should shame Smith over his involvement in "Sandpapergate" to get a psychological edge in the series, which starts in Perth on Friday.
The Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati will become the newest Test venue in India when it hosts the second and final match against World Test Championship defenders South Africa from November 22-26.
Ravichandran Ashwin hails Travis Head after his 69-ball century, the second-fastest in Ashes history, helped Australia easily chase down 205 runs on Day 2 of first Ashes Test.
The hosts lost six wickets in the first session for 94 runs after resuming on four for no loss on Day 2 of the fourth Ashes Test in Melbourne.
Having hit Western Australia's golf links before being beaten by eight wickets in Perth, England's enthusiasts will have access to a selection of championship courses to play a round before a refreshing dip in the Pacific Ocean.
Two Indian origin players -- Aryan Sharma and John James -- have been named in Australia's 15-member squad for the men's U-19 World Cup scheduled to be held in Namibia and Zimbabwe from January 15 to February 6.
'My body feels great right now, I am very confident of getting through all five (Tests) without any dramas.'
Australia pace spearhead Cummins to lead SRH for 3rd consecutive season in IPL
England need to alter their approach if they hope to claw their way back after their disastrous start to the Ashes series and avoid another drubbing, former Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson said.
'I was playing country cricket and working as a carpenter, and that was the dream for me.'
Mitchell Starc and Ben Stokes set the scene for a dramatic Ashes series.
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