Australia announce XI for 4th Test against India, Mitchell Starc to replace Mitchell Johnson

Mitchell Starc

Australia have announced their playing XI for the final Test against India, which will commence at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) on Tuesday. The Steve Smith-led side have made one change to the team, bringing in Mitchell Starc to replace the injured Mitchell Johnson.

Starc played in the second Test of the series at the Gabba and began with disappointing figures of 0/83 in the first innings. He did much better in India’s second essay as he managed to take the wickets of Murali Vijay and R Ashwin. The New South Welshman also struck an important half-century in the match.

During the Brisbane Test, Starc was heavily criticised by former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne for being “soft”. Warne had later clarified his comments, stating that he only meant that the left-arm pacer had to improve his body language.

The Australian team had flirted with playing two spinners in the upcoming Test, having included Ashton Agar as the 13^th man in their squad. In the end, the hosts have decided to stick with their strategy of playing 3 fast bowlers and the lone spinner in Nathan Lyon.

Johnson misses the match after being unable to recover from hamstring soreness. This is the first Test, the 33-year-old will miss after making his comeback against England in the Ashes in November 2013.

Playing XI: David Warner, Chris Rogers, Shane Watson, Steve Smith (c), Shaun Marsh, Joe Burns, Brad Haddin (wk), Mitchell Starc, Ryan Harris, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.

Australia: Warner, Rogers, Watson, Smith, S Marsh, Burns, Haddin, Starc, Harris, Lyon, Hazlewood #AUSvIND

— cricket.com.au (@CricketAus) January 5, 2015