Australia white-ball skipper Mitchell Marsh has dropped a small hint on his Test return for the Ashes after the head coach, Andrew McDonald, made it clear that the explosive opener was in the scheme of things.
Marsh is currently focusing on the T20Is against India, which will start on Wednesday. Josh Philippe is likely to play for Australia after Matt Short was ruled out due to a finger injury, while Ben McDermott has joined the squad as a cover for Short.
Mitchell Marsh lined up for a Test comeback after a spectacular season in limited-overs cricket
Mitchell Marsh has not played a single game in the longest format of the game ever since the Boxing Day Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy back in 2024. However, he is now in line for Test recall on the back of his commendable performances in limited-overs cricket.
Your daily dose of cricket!
Notably, he averages 60 in ODIs in 2025 and over 71.5 in the shortest format of the game, and all such records have come after he was appointed to be Australia’s skipper in the absence of Pat Cummins.
Marsh is one such player in the Aussie line-up who can play an ultra-aggressive brand of cricket just like England’s Bazballers do.
Mitchell Marsh was hoping for a month off after the India series
Ahead of the first T20I in Canberra, the Australian skipper, Mitchell Marsh, said that a Test return was never in his plans, but it might happen if things fall in place.
“I was hoping for a month off after this to be honest,” Marsh joked. “I haven’t given it much thought, to be honest. It’s been a busy schedule with our white-ball tour. I’m just focused on this series for now,” said Marsh.
“I do love playing for Western Australia, so we’ll just see where it lands at the end of this series.” Mitchell Marsh would make a return only as a specialist batter to the Test team, after he did not bowl a single spell with the ball over his last few Test appearances due to fitness issues.
“We still haven’t given up on Mitch Marsh’s Test career,” said Andrew McDonald
Mitchell Marsh has a solid record against England, with all three of his Test hundreds coming in the Ashes series. Hence, despite Marsh being skeptical of a comeback, the Australian head coach, Andrew McDonald, has kept him in the scheme of things.
“We still haven’t given up on Mitch Marsh’s Test career,” McDonald said on Monday.
“So what would the prep look like for him? It would have to be through white ball or maybe some Shield cricket after white ball if he isn’t in that first squad, and then [he] he can press his claim through that.
“There’s Shield [rounds] five and six also when we’re playing the Test matches, where players that aren’t in the first Test will obviously go to work then,” the Australian head coach added.
ALSO READ: Rohit Sharma called the ‘Most Underrated’ white-ball captain by legendary Australian skipper
