Ahead of the third Test match of the Ashes series against England, former cricketer Michael Clarke feels that the Australian selectors will pick Usman Khawaja for the clash.
The third Test match of the Ashes series between England and Australia is scheduled to be played from December 17 at the Adelaide Oval.
Earlier, Khawaja was ruled out of the second Test match as he failed to recover from his back spasms. Later, Travis Head replaced him at the top of the order.
Speaking about him, Clarke said that when a player reaches a certain age, he gets picked for big tournaments such as the World Cup or an Ashes series.
“I think the selectors will pick him [Usman Khawaja]. I think he`ll be back at the top of the order. I don`t know if I would make a change, to be honest. I think I`ve said before, normally with senior players like that and certainly when you get to that age, you`re selected for big tournaments, either a World Cup or an Ashes series, and at the end of those, your time is done, he said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
Further speaking, the former cricketer also said, considering that Australia is leading the contest and with Travis Head at the top, Clarke doesn`t feel the need for selectors to go back at Khawaja.
“Australia are 2-0 up. We`ve got someone at the top of the order that scored an unbelievable hundred [Travis Head]. I don`t know if they need to go back to that now. I know that might be hard on Uzzy because he`s had a wonderful career and been a big player,” he said.
Additionally, Australia`s captain Pat Cummins will mark his return to international cricket after recovering from his back injuries. The 32-year-old hasn`t played at the international level since the third Test against the West Indies in July.
Australia squad (third Test only): Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Brendan Doggett, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster.
(With ANI Inputs)