Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Wicketkeeper-batter Josh Inglis is likely to come in for injured Usman Khawaja and is poised to make his maiden Test appearance in Australia when the day-night Test begins in Brisbane on November 4. Inglis is expected to slot into the middle order, effectively taking over the position vacated by Travis Head, who will shift to an opening role alongside Jake Weatherald, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Acting skipper Steve Smith said the final XI would be confirmed only after the team gets a look at the pitch.
“(A) whole heap of things are on the table. We’ll wait and see what the wicket looks like and from there we’ll determine a playing XI,” Smith told reporters in Brisbane. Inglis, a wicketkeeper and specialist batter, has represented Australia in three Tests; two versus Sri Lanka and one against the West Indies. He scored 102 runs off 94 balls in his debut Test innings in Galle this year, making him the first Australian to reach triple digits on debut since Adam Voges in 2015.
Speaking on the potential inclusion of Inglis, Smith revealed that selectors are yet to settle on a decision. “It’s going to depend on how we match up. We will know later this afternoon once we see this wicket. He’s a pretty attacking batsman. Did pretty well in his debut in Sri Lanka, and has been in pretty good form. He plays fast bowling really well, so if he gets his opportunity, I’m sure he’ll do really well for us,” Smith said on The New Ball on SEN.
Khawaja joins Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood on the list of injured Australians during the ongoing Ashes series. He attempted to train for 30 minutes on Tuesday but felt uncomfortable during his net session. However, Cricket Australia confirmed on Tuesday that Khawaja had been ruled out of the Gabba Test and the team would now hunt for a new opening pair to take the field on Thursday.
Smith further made note of Khawaja’s absence, speaking of his future within the Test setup. “He obviously wasn’t fit to get up for this one. He’s doing all the right things to try and get himself fit as quickly as possible. He has been a quality player over a long period of time, anyone that plays over 80 Tests is a good cricketer.
