Australia has named their 15-man squad for the first two Tests of this Summer's Ashes series against England.
Among the biggest stories coming out of the squad was the recall of batsman Usman Khawaja, while T20 World Cup hero Mitchell Marsh didn't make the cut.
In addition to the 15-man squad, national selectors also announced an Australia A squad which will take part in a warm-up match with the 15-man squad. The Australia A squad is made up of some familiar names, while a few in form Sheffield shield performers have been rewarded.
Australia A Squad: Sean Abbot, Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Henry Hunt, Josh Inglis, Nic Maddinson, Mitchell Marsh, Matt Renshaw, Mark Steketee, Bryce Street
We take a look at which players in the Australia A squad could press their claim for a spot in the XI.
Alex Carey and Josh Inglis (wk)
With only one recognised wicketkeeper in the squad of 15, an injury to Tim Paine could open the door for Carey and Inglis.
Both without a baggy green in their career, a Test cap would be reward for effort.
With Tim Paine fresh off a neck surgery, the selectors will be monitoring his health closely as he has not played a game yet this season.
Out of the two, Carey has had the better output thus far in the Sheffield Shield competition. The South Australian wicketkeeper made 148 runs through 6 innings this season at an average of 29.60.
Inglis has only featured in one Sheffield Shield contest this season, managing just 41 runs in his 2 innings at an average of 20.50.
Mitchell Marsh
A career-defining T20 World Cup final knock was not enough to put Mitch Marsh into the 15-man Ashes squad.
Therefore Marsh has had to settle for being picked in the Australia A squad.
Having played no Sheffield Shield cricket did Marsh no favours as he was in Dubai to play part of the winning World Cup side.
Marsh could certainly still find a way to don the baggy green in this year's Ashes. If the big-hitting all-rounder can put on a good showing in the 3-day trial match with bat, and provide a steady bowling option it would force the selectors to pay attention.
If Marsh were to make a run at the playing XI come the final three Tests, it would more than likely be at number 6 as the all-rounder, or at number 5 as a batsman.
With Cameron Green the current all-rounder at number 6 it seems unlikely that the selectors part ways with him in favour of Marsh for the time being however an injury could force their hand.
After the recall of Usman Khawaja, there seems to still be uncertainty around who will bat at 5 with Travis Head also in the conversation. If neither of the aforementioned can do enough to satisfy selectors and Marsh can pile on the runs, the door may be ajar for Marsh in the middle order.
Nic Maddinson
Nic Maddinson wasted no time picking up where he left off in the Sheffield Shield in previous seasons.
Through just two games this season, Maddinson has scored 250 runs at an average of 83.33 highlighted by 128 against New South Wales.
The left-hander has played just the three Test matches for Australia, the last of which coming back in 2016.
After being the Shields leading run-scorer in 2019-20 season, Maddinson has taken his red-ball cricket to another level since crossing to Victoria from New South Wales. Maddinson has been batting at number four so far this season.
Maddinson could consider himself stiff to not be inside the 15-man squad for the first two Tests against England based on his track record over the past 3 seasons.
If Usman Khawaja and Travis Head are unable to grab their opportunity in the middle order, Nic Maddinson could find himself back at Test level later in the summer, most likely batting at 5 in the Australian team.
Will Pucovski
There was one glaring name left out of both the 15-man Ashes squad and the Australia A squad, Will Pucovski.
The young Victorian continues to battle with concussion as he tries to get back to the Test arena.
At full strength, it was more than likely that Pucovski was going to partner David Warner at the Gabba for the First Test in Brisbane. However, another concussion scare in the Sheffield Shield playing for Victoria has ruled him out for at least the first two matches of the series.
Pucovski looked comfortable at Test match level last summer in his debut against India at the SCG where he scored an impressive 62 on debut.
Pucovski is a name to watch that could quite possibly jump from out of both squads straight into the playing XI later in the series. The performance of fellow Victorian batsman and opener Marcus Harris will also be a talking point when Pucovski is cleared to return to playing.
