In a fitting tribute to Shane Warne, a legspinner will make his Test debut for Australia just a week after the death of the pin-up boy for cricket’s darkest art.
Australian captain Pat Cummins has confirmed that 28-year-old Queenslander Mitchell Swepson will come into the side to form half of a two-pronged spin attack alongside Nathan Lyon. The second Test starts tomorrow in Karachi, with both sides desperate for a win to take the edge in the three-Test series.
Swepson will replace Josh Hazlewood, who has been left out of the side just one Test into his comeback from a side strain that ruined his Ashes campaign.
READ MORE: World No.1 Medvedev unsure about future as tennis cracks down on Russia
READ MORE: New Panther Sean O’Sullivan makes startling admission after first game
READ MORE: ‘Extreme’ Mercedes F1 design leaves rival teams stunned
The change comes after the first Test meandered to a dull draw, with the tourists taking just four wickets for the entire match.
Hazlewood and Mitch Starc both went wicketless but Starc has held his place in the Australian attack, alongside Cummins, Lyon, Swepson and all-rounder Cameron Green.
The Swepson selection would likely have Warne looking down with a smile after he lobbied for the promising legspinner to get his chance at Test level for several years without convincing selectors.
The pair worked together regularly over the last three years before the 52-year-old’s sudden death last week.
Swepson has previously described the impact Warne had on his approach to the crease, with the Spin King instructing him to slow down his run up when he first started working with him in 2019.
The Queenslander has since become the country’s most consistent red-ball wrist spinner, cutting his economy rate drastically while still picking up wickets.
“Bloody hard to wrap my head around this. Never got to properly thank this man for his influence on my cricket career,” Swepson wrote in an Instagram tribute after Warne’s death.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CasLZ5OBJDw/?utm_source=ig_embed&
“He has made me push myself day in and day out without ever knowing it. Truly the greatest cricketer I’ve ever seen play the game. All my thoughts are with his family and friends.
“Is and always will be the, The King.”
Australian XI: Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Swepson.
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!