Australia coach Andrew McDonald has revealed Usman Khawaja is a certainty to play in the fifth Ashes Test at the SCG, while also hinting that off-spinner Todd Murphy will play. Meanwhile, England have ruled out fast bowler Gus Atkinson with a hamstring injury, making him the sixth bowler to be ruled out in the series.
Atkinson limped off the MCG during the fourth Test after grabbing at his hamstring. England announced on Monday that he won’t be available for the Sydney Test (starting January 4), with Matthew Potts expected to play his first Test in a little over 12 months to replace him.
Andrew McDonald (R) has hinted at picking Todd Murphy (second from left) for the fifth Ashes Test at the SCG. Image: Getty
Atkinson is the third England bowler to be ruled out of the series, joining Mark Wood and Jofra Archer. He’s the sixth overall, with Aussie bowlers Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon suffering the same fate.
Wood only played the first match of the series before succumbing to a knee injury, while Archer played the first three before copping a side strain. It means Brydon Carse is the lone English bowler standing from the first Test in Perth.
Atkinson was dropped for the third Test, which opened the door for Josh Tongue to come in. Tongue showed he should have played the whole series when he became the first English man to take a five-wicket haul at the MCG in 27 years in the fourth Test.
Gus Atkinson has been ruled out of the fifth Ashes Test with a hamstring injury. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/Getty Images)
Todd Murphy likely to play fifth Ashes Test at SCG
Meanwhile, McDonald has hinted that spinner Murphy will play in Sydney after being overlooked in Melbourne. The Aussies went with a four-pronged pace attack on an MCG pitch that did plenty for the seamers, but Jhye Richardson looms as the man most likely to make way for Murphy in Sydney – where it traditionally spins a bit more.
“I’d love to pick Todd, I’d love to see what he’s got to offer,” McDonald told reporters on Monday. “I think he’s seven Test matches into his career and he’s well placed on the back of the last two years as well. We think (Murphy) is back to his best and what we’ve seen from him when he’s come back to the camp has been excellent, so yeah, we’d love to pick him.”
Richardson played in Melbourne after recovering from a shoulder issue, but McDonald admitted they’re not sure how he’d hold up as the third quick alongside a spinner. “The combination of those quicks, we thought they balanced themselves nicely,” he said. “Mitchell Starc allows great balance being a left-armer who bowls 145.
“Michael Neser did an outstanding job and it was great to see Jhye – albeit a small impact on the game – it was good to see him return. I think Jhye in a four-prong quick attack fitted, in particular, how much we think his capacity might be. Can he play in a three-man pace attack? That’s something we will have to decide but he definitely fitted well in that four-man pace attack.”
No indications that Usman Khawaja will retire
McDonald said Khawaja will play in Sydney but has given no indication he’s planning to retire after that. Many believe the SCG Test will be a ‘farewell’ for Khawaja, but McDonald said there’s been no conversations about that.
Cameron Green, Marnus Labuschagne and Jake Weatherald are all under the pump and in desperate need of runs in Sydney. It looks like they’ll all survive, but players like Matt Renshaw and Beau Webster are in the frame if changes are made for the series finale.
