IND vs AUS: Australia Drop Nathan McSweeney, Call Up 19-Year-Old Sam Konstas For Boxing Day Test In Melbourne

IND vs AUS: Australia have axed three-test old Nathan McSweeney for Melbourne's Boxing Day Test, scheduled to get underway from December 26.

Sam Konstas scored a century against India in the Prime Ministers XI vs India warm-up Test in Canberra.

Source : X/ @cricketcomau

IND vs AUS: Australia have dropped opener Nathan McSweeney and replaced him with 19-year-old Sam Konstas in their 15-man squad for the India vs Australia Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), scheduled to start from December 26 (Thursday). McSweeney's exclusion is surprising, as although he didn't score big runs, the right-handed batter displayed encouraging signs in patches during the first three IND vs AUS Tests.

25-year-old McSweeney made his Australia debut in the first IND vs AUS Test at the Perth Stadium and managed to score 10 runs in the match. While the three-test old only scored 72 runs across the three IND vs AUS Tests, he gained praise from critics for his batting technique, especially while leaving the ball. 

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Sam Konstas has been continuously banging on the selectors' door with impressive domestic performances throughout the Australian summer. He also set a new Big Bash League (BBL) record as the youngest player to score a half-century on his debut for the Sydney Thunder on Tuesday. The right-handed batter also scored a century for the Prime Minister's XI against India at Manuka Oval, Canberra earlier this month against a bowling attack comprising the likes of Akash Deep, Mohammad Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna.

Australia Squad for IND vs AUS Boxing Day Test: Pat Cummins (c), Travis Head (vc), Steve Smith (vc), Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster

JUST IN: Australia have added young gun Sam Konstas to a 15-player squad for the final two #AUSvIND Tests | @ARamseyCricket https://t.co/9P0hGCCqXw

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 20, 2024

George Bailey Explains McSweeney's Omission

Australia’s national selection panel chair George Bailey explained when announcing Konstas's call-up, the decision was driven by the need to find a batter capable of taking on India's fast bowlers, with McSweeney’s strike rate of just 34 per 100 balls faced being a key factor in the decision.

"We remain confident Nathan has the ability and temperament to succeed at Test level in the future. It was a difficult decision to leave him out. It has clearly been a challenge at the top of the order for batters throughout the series and we want to provide the option of a different line-up for the next two matches. Sam gets a call up to the Test squad for the first time. His style of batting offers a point of difference and we look forward to watching his game develop further," Bailey said as quoted by cricket.com.au.