Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja Included In Australia Squad To Face New Zealand

Cricket Australia’s National Selection Panel has named a 12-man squad for the first two Commonwealth Bank Test matches against New Zealand in Brisbane and Perth.

The squad to contest the Trans-Tasman Trophy is:
Steve Smith (c)
David Warner (vc)
Joe Burns
Josh Hazlewood
Usman Khawaja
Mitchell Johnson
Nathan Lyon
Mitchell Marsh
Peter Nevill
Mitchell Starc
Peter Siddle
Adam Voges

National Selector Rod Marsh said the group of players chosen represents an exciting new era for Australian cricket following the retirement of a number of senior players earlier this year.

“We will need to play at our best to beat a very talented New Zealand side, but we think this squad has the goods to do it and also provides an opportunity for some exciting younger players to make their mark in the Test arena,” Marsh said.

Queenslanders Joe Burns and Usman Khawaja, who were both included in the Test squad for the postponed Qantas Tour of Bangladesh, have both been named for the home series.

Khawaja has not played a Test since August 2013 while Burns’ last Test innings was in January when he made scores of 58 and 66 against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Commenting on their inclusion, Marsh said:
“Usman is a very good player of fast-bowling and is a fine technician; we feel he will make a really solid contribution towards our batting this series.

“Joe thoroughly deserves his chance and was unlucky to miss out on the West Indies and Ashes tours off the back of two decent performances in his last Test match for Australia in Sydney.

“He also put in terrific performances during the recent Australia A Series in India .”

West Australian Adam Voges rounds out the middle order with his state teammate Mitchell Marsh selected as the all-rounder.

“Adam is a calm player with a cool head and brings a lot of experience to the side. He has a solid Test and first-class average and will provide good support to our two young leaders in Steve Smith and David Warner.

“Mitchell provides good balance as the all-rounder and we believe he has a great future as a player for Australia.

Australia’s group of bowlers remains unchanged from the Ashes Series in England earlier this year.

“We are pleased with how our bowling unit is going at the moment. Both Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood had fantastic performances in the Matador Cup and Mitchell Johnson looks ready to fire after a decent break.

“Off the back of a great bowling performance in the last Test Peter Siddle earns his selection with Nathan Lyon, a proven performer in the side rounding out our attack.”