Former pacer Mitchell Johnson reckons that Australia should drop out-of-form Marnus Labuschagne from the playing XI for the day-night Adelaide Test against India.
All-rounder Cameron White has said that he had no reservations about choosing between leading Victoria into its Sheffield Shield title defence against Queensland and appearing in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Shaun Marsh's name crops up as Australia look for right opening combo.
Following a serious injury lay-off, Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell will assess his fitness at club side Fitzroy-Doncaster's fixture this weekend.
While Sheffield Shield game for South Australia on a bouncy track would have been ideal preparation for Perth, Head feels that he will relax bit before resuming training for the India series.
Uncapped McSweeney to open with Khawaja in India series
'I'm leaning towards McSweeney now for that opening role at the start of the Australian summer.'
Australian batter Will Pucovski suffered a nasty blow on his head and had to be substituted while playing for Victoria in a Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania in Hobart on Sunday.
Back-to-back Test series wins over Australia are almost unheard of but India have won the last four they have played.
Lavishing praise on young Sam Konstas, former opener David Warner has urged Australia's senior players to adopt a similar aggressive approach when facing Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah
Australia head coach Andrew McDonald believes the absence of Mohammed Shami during the marquee Border Gavaskar Trophy next month is a huge loss for India.
Australia's decision to field an unchanged frontline pace attack last summer might have been unusual as selectors now reassess their seam options after losing allrounder Cameron Green.
Australian skipper Pat Cummins had a special message for the 19-year-old debutant Sam Kontas, urging the batter to enjoy being a part of the Boxing Day Test, and not overthink it.
The Australian media summed up their team's 295-run hammering by India in the opening Test with strong headlines such as 'Perth-etic Humiliation' and 'Monster Loss', former players called for some tough decisions, including sacking Marnus Labuschagne.
Will Rohit Sharma get one final opportunity to salvage his Test career?
Katich agrees that if Mitchell Marsh isn't contributing with the ball, then Australia's National Selection Panel will need to have a look at the combination considering the all-rounder's poor returns with the bat.
Cameron Green will change Australia's bowling dynamics for the upcoming five-Test Border-Gavaskar Trophy and may increase spinner Nathan Lyon's workload
The debate over the vacant slot at the top of the Australia batting order continues to captivate the nation's sports media a month before the opening clash in a blockbuster five-Test series against India.
Nathan McSweeney had a disappointing start to his international career after being ousted by Bumrah for 10 and zero in the first Test at Perth.
Veteran Australian batter Cameron Bancroft staked a claim to the vacant opener's slot post David Warner's Test retirement, saying a 'specialist' should be considered for the position.
Nathan McSweeney is on the brink of a major debut, set to partner Usman Khawaja as Australia's opening batters in the series against India.
Australia opener Marcus Harris was dropped from the Test squad and replaced by Queensland batsman Joe Burns for the upcoming two-match series against Pakistan.
New South Wales paceman Abbott and Queensland veteran Neser are the reserve quicks behind regulars Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and James Pattinson.
Fined for dissent in Sheffield Shield match
Australian bowler Sean Abbott, who bowled the bouncer that led to the death of Phillip Hughes, is set to return to action.
Australia head coach Justin Langer hinted that they will go with tried and tested players when India arrive for a four-Test series at the end of the year unless an exceptional performer emerges from the Sheffield Shield.
Sean Abbott and Beau Webster, seasoned domestic cricketers, remain on the fringes of Australia's Test squad
'...there'll be nerves and a bit of pressure, but that's all part of it, and I'm just excited to see what it all brings.'
'He's got a pretty good record against Indian batsmen (123 wickets in 28 Tests versus India).' 'In India too he has a great record (56 wickets in 11 Tests in India), that is a pretty good record against a country that traditionally plays spin very well.'
As Australia fell to two straight losses against hosts India in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Geoff Lawson held skipper Pat Cummins accountable.
The unavailability of a suitable ball remains the only obstacle in Cricket Australia's grand plan to hold a night Test and in a bid to overcome the hurdle, CA will trial fluorescent balls in the domestic Sheffield Shield matches. CA chief executive James Sutherland said the success or failure of the trial will determine how the Cricket Board proceeds with its plans of breaking away from tradition to hold night Tests.
Very few young Australian cricketers have generated as much buzz in recent years as the 22-year-old, thanks to his prolific form in Sheffield Shield.
Australia has a mandatory 14-day quarantine for international arrivals to curb the spread of COVID-19.
Australia's selectors sprung a major surprise on Friday by naming uncapped fast bowler Joe Mennie in a 12-man squad for the first two matches of a three-test series against South Africa beginning in Perth next week. Mennie was part of an inexperienced bowling attack that was humbled by the Proteas batsmen in the recent one-day series in South Africa, which the hosts won 5-0. Despite accumulating figures of 0-82 on debut, the 27-year-old was preferred to Jackson Bird, who toured New Zealand and Sri Lanka as part of the Australian test squad.
Tim Paine ended his cricket career on Friday after Tasmania's Sheffield Shield match against Queensland ended in a draw
'I'd like to probably err on the side of preparing him through red ball. We know how good a white-ball player he is so you put a priority on what it looks like next summer.'
The 27-year-old Agar had featured in both the limited over formats for Australia last summer but missed his spot in the ODIs on their tour of England in September.
Fast-rising Australian batsman Will Pucovski feels he has "earned the right" to be in the red-ball squad for the series against India and is better prepared to make his Test debut compared to a couple of seasons ago.
Australia's star batter Travis Head believes opening the batting in Test cricket is a "specialist job" and has ruled himself out of contention to replace veteran David Warner.
Returning after a long injury lay-off, Glenn Maxwell hammered a sizzling half-century and make a strong case for his selection for the upcoming India ODI series.
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