Australian sport was reeling in shock after Phillip Hughes suffered a serious head injury while batting in a domestic cricket match on Tuesday.
The squad also sees the return of proven Test and one-day bowler James Pattinson, who joined Australia A in India after recovering from a string of injuries
Sacked Australia captain Steve Smith and David Warner have both been banned for 12 months for their roles in the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town.
Australia skipper Steve Smith on Saturday stressed on the importance of winning the ICC World Twenty20, the one trophy missing from the glittering cabinet of the record five-time world champions who're no 1 in Test and ODI format. "It's the one trophy that eluded us. We want to win every tournament and series that we play in. We are pretty settled. We have got 15 guys who can give this tournament a real shake," Smith said about the fifth ranked side. "We played good in South Africa to win that series there. Guys have stepped up and we're in good form. It's going to take us squad mentality to do well in this tournament," the Aussie skipper said about the team who won in South Africa 3-1 before landing here." Australia lost in New Zealand 1-2 in an ODI series before winning the Tests 2-0 and they travelled for the World T20 build-up to South Africa where they won 2-1. "It's just about being positive. We've got a good squad together. We know what to expect. It's about going out there and making sure we can execute our skills. If we do that well hopefully we will win a lot of other games."
The 35-year-old Queenslander withdrew from Australia's ongoing warm-up match against Essex and quit the sport less than a week before the first Ashes Test against England starts at Cardiff next Wednesday.
Galle has built a reputation as a spinners' paradise but Australia captain Steve Smith hopes there will be substantial reverse swing at the venue as his top-ranked team bid for a series-levelling win against Sri Lanka in the second test. Sri Lanka inflicted a 106-run defeat on the touring side at Pallekele last week in the opening match of the three-test series with the spinners taking 18 out of 20 Australian wickets to fall.
Australian coach Darren Lehmann is reportedly considering playing reserve wicket-keeper Matthew Wade as a specialist batsman in the third Ashes Test at Old Trafford if he manages to make a good score in the tour game against county side Sussex, beginning on Friday.
'If it got to a last-minute situation, I suspect that we would offer to provide good officers brokering between the parties, but there's six months between now and the Ashes'
Australia opener David Warner says flat pitches rather than bats with thicker edges are the reason batsmen have the upper hand in Test cricket.
He may have had to relinquish his captaincy and a place in the side during the World Cup, but Kings XI's George Bailey utilized his 'spare' time to prepare himself for the IPL.
West Indies have said they are embracing their underdog status for the three-Test series against Australia, which starts in Hobart on Thursday, but the reality is they have very little choice in the matter.
Williamson's departure for 59 helped reduce New Zealand to 142 for three at the break -- 361 runs in arrears -- but a rain storm wiped out the final session and ensured the match would go into a fifth day.
Michael Clarke still has fitness tests to pass to meet his deadline to be ready for the second group match against Bangladesh.
Michael Clarke opened the batting with Aaron Finch in their World Cup warm-up match against UAE.
Just a fortnight left to prove his fitness, Michael Clarke appeared to be heading in the right direction as the Australian captain bowled, fielded and batted without any signs of discomfort against Bangladesh in a practice match in Brisbane.
Australian cricket coach Darren Lehmann warned his players against 'crossing the line' in on-field aggression but conceded that the side would always 'teeter pretty close' to the edge.
Batting legend Sunil Gavaskar defended Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his "unrest" comment that got the media talking about a rift within the Indian cricket team in Australia, saying that the Indian captain might have chosen a wrong word to describe the situation.
Ashes battles against England have done much to shape Steve Smith as a cricketer but his first series in charge of Australia could do plenty to define his legacy as captain.
Bairstow replaces jaded Buttler in England squad while Australia rope in Hastings, and call-up Handscomb after injury glut
The 21-year-old Renshaw has averaged 36.64 from his 10 Tests in a positive start to his international career but has had a tough Shield campaign for Queensland, failing to surpass 20 runs in his four innings.
A bizarre standoff between Michael Clarke and selectors over the Australia captain's hopes of playing the first Test against India next week remained unresolved on Tuesday after the nation's cricket board dug in its heels.
Mitchell Johnson will be rested for the opening One-Day International against England to freshen up for the rest of the series, Australia coach Darren Lehmann said on Thursday.
Back in the Australian ODI fold after more than a year, off-spinner Nathan Lyon says he cannot wait to challenge the Indian batsmen in the fourth one-dayer in Canberra, a venue he knows inside out after being a part of Manuka Oval's ground staff. Life has come a full circle for the 28-year-old, whose work as a curator took him from Canberra to Adelaide, and he is looking forward to not only extend his eight-match ODI career but also make a foray on the international Twenty20 stage. "I have got the opportunity and I will perform. I am very grateful and thankful to the selectors for giving me the opportunity, but I am just looking to go out there and hopefully keep winning games for Australia," Lyon told reporters. "I am feeling confident. I have enjoyed my time at the Sydney Sixes. I had some good performances there. As a team we didn't do too well, but I was pretty happy personally with the way the ball was getting off the hand.
The 29-year-old, who got married this week, received a warm welcome from an unusually large crowd at the Glenn McGrath Oval and looked his usual twitchy self at the crease as he rattled off a half century in 62 balls.
Australia captain Michael Clarke has dismissed any suggestions he might quit One-day cricket after returning home from Zimbabwe tour with a hamstring injury.
Captain Steve Smith is aware of India captain Kohli's good form and believes keeping him 'quiet' can bring some success to the visitors. He also believes that his players know to play spin well enough especially after the challenging tour of Bangladesh.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann said on Thursday he would step down after this week's Test match against South Africa, as he took ultimate responsibility for the culture of a team embroiled in a ball-tampering scandal that has rocked the sport.
Reaction after Australia's Steve Smith, who has stepped down as captain, confessed on Saturday that the team's "leadership group" had hatched a plan to alter the condition of the ball during the third day of the third Test against South Africa.
Top class left-armers are in short supply and chief selector Rod Marsh joked that he had mulled telephoning Johnson to see whether he might like to come out of retirement.
f we have that final session on the fifth day under lights, and a Test match result is in the balance, then I think that it could be anything for Test cricket. "This could be something that is outstanding for the game moving forward.
Australia will resist the temptation to tinker with their team on tour against West Indies and plan to field their best 11 in a bid to sweep the two-Test series and build momentum for the Ashes, selector Rod Marsh has said.
Sacked Australia coach Mickey Arthur has been left "extremely upset and disappointed" after his confidential lawsuit against Cricket Australia was leaked to the media leading to a massive controversy.
A ball-tampering scandal that devastated Australia cast a dark cloud over a dramatic cricketing year
India looking to avoid a seventh straight Test loss on Australian soil.
Alastair Cook and Michael Clarke both have particular reasons for wanting to win the upcoming Ashes series that begins with the first cricket Test in Cardiff starting on Wednesday.
Australia will have to win both Tests in Dubai and Abu Dhabi to go one point clear of South Africa, who displaced them at the top in July, but there is still little clarity about the side who would walk out for the first match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium.
'We've just got to make sure we get enough balls in the right areas and be relentless and patient and stick two up their nose an over' Australia have not lost a series home or away to West Indies since 1992/93.
Australia coach Darren Lehmann believes the Sydney Cricket Ground pitch will produce a high-scoring World Cup semi-final against India on Thursday.
The dry and flat surface could increase the chances of the defending World champions in the second semi-final against India.
Australia captain Michael Clarke showed a tetchy side to his nature in his pre-match press conference.
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