Australia captain Cummins, Hazlewood to miss another Ashes Test

MELBOURNE,: Australia captain Pat Cummins and fellow paceman Josh Hazlewood will sit out another Ashes Test with injury while opening batter Usman Khawaja, who suffered back spasms in Perth, has been retained in an unchanged squad for the second match in Brisbane.

Australia, 1-0 up in the series after beating England by eight wickets in the opener at Perth Stadium, will again be captained by stand-in skipper Steve Smith, with Mitchell Starc leading a pace attack with Scott Boland and Brendan Doggett.

Cricket Australia said Cummins would travel with the squad, as he did for Perth, despite being unavailable to play.

The early call on Cummins comes after Australia coach and selector Andrew McDonald said he would be given until the 11th hour to prove his fitness for the Gabba match, which starts on December 4.

Cummins has been sidelined with a lumbar stress injury since Australia swept West Indies in the Caribbean in July.

Hazlewood, part of Australia’s triumvirate of elite quicks with Cummins and Starc, is continuing his recovery from a hamstring strain that ruled him out of Perth.

While Cummins bowled at or near full-tilt in a nets session in Sydney on Friday, Hazlewood bowled off shortened run-ups along with reserve seamer Sean Abbott, who is also nursing a hamstring injury.

Khawaja was retained after back spasms in the Perth Test prevented him from opening the batting.

The 38-year-old’s spot is under scrutiny, though, with Travis Head’s match-winning 123 opening in place of Khawaja triggering calls for his retention at the top of the order.

Australia squad:

Steve Smith (capt), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster