Key Bowlers Miss Out as Australia Confirms Squad for the 2nd Test

Australia has announced its squad for the second Test, set to be played at Brisbane. Fans expected the team to make some changes in their line-up for the same, but that has not happened. Continuing with the same squad, Australia has missed out on their key bowlers once again.

Call it a trouble or a mastermind stroke for Australia, as they have announced an unchanged squad for the second Test. The team was already able to dominate England with this team in the first Test, grabbing a win by 8 wickets. And now, for the second Test to be played at Brisbane, fans had waited for the team its squad.

The wait was just to know which bowler finally makes his comeback to the team. Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins had missed out on the first Test due to their injuries. While everyone expected them to return for the second game, it is not going to happen now. Still, the team has Starc with the pink ball as a deadly weapon.

1. Australia's Squad for 2nd Test

The second Test between Australia and England is all set to be played from 4 December. And it will be played at The Gabba, which is known for having some of the most thrilling matches in the history of the game. While England had already announced their squad for the series, Australia had announced their team only for the first Test.

Australia's Squad for 2nd Test:

• Steve Smith (capt)
• Scott Boland
• Alex Carey
• Brendan Doggett
• Cameron Green
• Travis Head
• Josh Inglis
• Usman Khawaja
• Marnus Labuschagne
• Nathan Lyon
• Michael Neser
• Mitchell Starc
• Jake Weatherald
• Beau Webster

And now, Australia has finally revealed the team with which they will be heading to the next game. It will be intense to have Mitchell Starc with the pink ball, as his performances grow with the same. While Starc and Boland will power the team's bowling line-up, it should be noted that Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins from the same.

It should be noted that the squad is unchanged. Australia brings in the same lineup for the second Test which helped them to get a dominant win in the opener. With Hazlewood and Cummins missing out on the same, it is awaited to see when they are finally available to play for Australia.

2. Hazlewood & Cummins Injury

Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins will now be missing out two Tests due to the injury. It has been months since fans saw Pat Cummins in action, as he suffered an injury during the series against the West Indies. He was bowling well in the practice sessions during the Perth Test, which made fans think that to the team in the second Test.

Earlier it was also revealed that Cummins playing all the Tests after coming back from injury will be a challenge. It may be possible that he returns to the team for the third Test and leads the Australian side. Along with that, Australia still has a great leader in absence of Pat Cummins, as Steve Smith

Josh Hazlewood has also been sidelined for the second Test match. He suffered with a hamstring injury in the Sheffield Shield match right before the Ashes. Eventually, he was not cleared to play the first Test, and now he has been excluded from the team in the second Test too. Fans will have to wait for a few more days to watch Hazlewood, Cummins and Starc bowling together for the team.

3. First Test Magic

Even though Australia will be playing without two major pacers, it is not a new thing for them. This also happened for the team in the first Test, as Hazlewood and Cummins were unavailable. But there was a bowler who was like, No Hazlewood, No Cummins, No Problem. And it was the one and only, Mitchell Starc.

Starc was able to take up 7 wickets for the team in the first innings, registering his career best figures in the Test format. Later in the second innings of the game, he was also able to take 3 wickets, putting up 10 wickets in a match. Scott Boland and Brendan Doggett also helped Starc to a great extent, as Australia was able to bundle out England for low scores.

And on the batting side, the team has never had any troubles lately. Usman Khawaja did miss out playing with the bat for the majority of the game due to back spasms. But Travis Head, Steve Smith, and Marnus Labuschagne were able to power Australia to secure an impressive victory in the first Test.