Cricket Australia have announced the ODI squad for the New Zealand tour. A couple of surprises were in store for the fans as uncapped Adam Zampa has been included in the squad. Meanwhile, in-form Usman Khawaja has been ignored for the upcoming Chappell-Hadlee Trophy.
"We have selected Adam Zampa as the spinning option for this tour in place of Nathan Lyon," national selector Rod Marsh told reporters at a press conference on Monday.
"Adam has certainly put forward a strong case for selection through good performances in the KFC Big Bash as well as the Matador Cup earlier in the season and we think he has thoroughly earned this opportunity."
The squad has remained largely unchanged after a thumping 4-1 victory over India in the ODI series recently. Nathan Lyon, who was included for the last two ODIs against India has been left out of the squad as he suffered from a minor niggle. Australian national selectors want him to get fit ahead of the Test series which will take place after the ODI series. This was the only change in the squad that was made.
Usman Khawaja, who has been in red-hot form with his willow, was ignored for the forthcoming tour against the Kiwis. The question remained, who would have Khawaja replaced in the current ODI squad? Aaron Finch, David Warner and Shaun Marsh have all been in good touch during the India ODI series.
"The squad remains largely unchanged after a fantastic series win against India. We know one of the biggest challenges we will face in New Zealand is adapting to the change in conditions," Marsh added.
"It has been well documented that this is something we have struggled with in recent times and a major focus for this squad will be to reverse that trend."
"The New Zealand side will be very tough to beat in their home conditions. We know we will need to be at the top of our game if we want to be competitive."
Australia will play a three-match ODI series against the Black Caps and will start from 3 February. The first ODI will be played in Auckland followed by the second in Wellington (6 February) and the final match of the series will be held at Hamilton on 8 February. The Aussies will also play a Test and T20 series after the ODI series.
Australia's ODI squad for New Zealand tour: Steve smith (C), David Warner, George Bailey, Scott Boland, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, John Hastings, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Mathew Wade, Kane Richardson, Adam Zampa.
