Australia have made a massive change to their lineup for the 2nd Border-Gavaskar series Test against India which is set to take place in Adelaide. The Baggy Greens have brought in all-rounder Beau Webster into their squad and he is likely to replace fellow all-rounder Mitchell Marsh in the starting 11.
The Tasmanian was handed his maiden international call-up despite claims from head coach Andrew McDonald that the hosts would have an unchanged 13-man squad for the day-night Test that begins on December 6.
After bowling 17 overs in the Test match at Optus Stadium in Perth, Marsh came up sore. Australia coach Andrew McDonald admitted later that the all-rounder didn’t have the necessary workloads coming into the series after the team’s first-choice fourth-seamer, Cameron Green, was ruled out of the summer with a stress fracture of the back.
There are chances that Marsh will keep his place in the XI for the Adelaide Test, but he may then feature solely as a batter and not bowl even a single over.
Meanwhile, Webster’s call-up is a reward for his excellent performances in first-class cricket over the last 2 seasons. Last year, he became only the second player in Sheffield Shield history to score more than 900 runs and take 30 wickets in a season. This season, he’s already scored 448 runs and has taken 16 wickets as well.
The 30-year-old Webster hasn’t been able to make his debut for Australia in any format so far but looks like he will finally be getting his chance in the Adelaide Test.
Webster is a regular in the Big Bash League (BBL) and has featured for 3 franchises so far in his career namely – Melbourne Renegades, Melbourne Stars and Hobart Hurricanes. He has also featured for the Brampton Warriors in the Vitality Blast.
Webster has a fantastic record in first-class cricket, scoring a total of 5297 runs in 93 matches with a highest score of 187. He also has a great average of 37.83 in the format with 12 centuries and 24 half-centuries. It will be interesting to see how he fairs against India if he gets a chance to play in the second Test.
