Mitchell Marsh named T20I captain as Australia include three uncapped players to face South Africa

Cricket Australia has unveiled hard-hitting all-rounder Mitchell Marsh as their new T20I captain. The West Australian fills in the spot left vacant by Aaron Finch, with the board also announcing a 14-man squad for the three-match T20I series against South Africa

Finch, the most successful Australian T20I skipper, quit international cricket after the defending champions failed to go past the group stage of the World Cup on home soil in 2022. The right-hander's form with the bat was also questionable a few months prior to that.

Meanwhile, Marsh has been one of their best performers in T20I cricket for a while now. The 31-year-old played an integral role in their T20 World Cup victory two years ago in the UAE, hammering an unbeaten 77 in the final.

Chief Selector George Bailey addressed Marsh's appointment as Australia's T20I captain and said, as quoted by cricket.com.au:

"Mitch has long been a senior player within the white-ball structure, with this an opportunity for him to add to his leadership skills at international level. We look forward to him taking that step in South Africa."

The 14-man squad includes three uncapped players in Spencer Johnson, Aaron Hardie, and Matt Short, rewarded for their Big Bash League performances. Sean Abbott and Jason Behrendorff are the most experienced seamers in the squad, with nine T20I appearances to their name.

The likes of Pat Cummins, Starc, and Josh Hazlewood have been rested, keeping in mind their heavy workload in the Ashes series and the critical months that follow. Cummins, notably, will miss at least six weeks of action due to his wrist injury and is likely to join during the ODI series against South Africa.

Nathan Ellis, who has flourished in his limited opportunities for 2021 World T20 champions, gives another seam-bowling option, while Marcus Stoinis is also capable of chipping in with a few overs.

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Australia's 18-man T20I squad against South Africa:

Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Jason Behrendorff, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.

The three-match T20I series begins on August 30.