Green, Murphy at centre of selection toss-up

Australia are pondering how they can get Cameron Green back into their side for the fourth Test in Manchester, and may ultimately face a selection toss-up between the two youngest members of their touring party.

With Pat Cummins suggesting David Warner's spot in the side is safe, Todd Murphy shapes as a possible candidate to make way if Australia deem Green a must-pick after he missed the third Test with a minor hamstring complaint.

His replacement at Headingley, Mitch Marsh, has made himself indispensable after a rollicking first-innings century.

As Cummins put it, selectors must now consider: "Basically, how do you fit seven really good batters and a keeper into a team, or does someone need to miss out?"

Josh Hazlewood was rested in Leeds with an eye to having him ripe to play back-to-back Tests at Old Trafford and The Oval. His return at Scott Boland's expense would reunite the big three pacemen who (excluding the injured Nathan Lyon) have been Australia's leading wicket takers in this Ashes series.

That leaves Murphy, who did little wrong in his Ashes debut and would be an unfortunate casualty for the high-stakes contest with the series set at 2-1.

The 22-year-old held his nerve to dismiss Ben Stokes in England's first innings, creating three chances in a last-ditch onslaught from the captain, and then only bowled two overs in the second dig as the hosts reeled in their target of 251 in only 50 overs.

Part-timers Marnus Labuschagne and Travis Head were both bowling more than usual at an optional training session at Old Trafford two days out from the Test getting underway.

Bringing in Green at Murphy's expense would leave those two, and possibly Steve Smith, to do the bulk of the spin bowling in the fourth Test.

Image Id: B0102DE0D78449B698099C1763ABCA83 Image Caption: Todd Murphy chats with skipper Pat Cummins at Old Trafford on Monday // Getty

A pace-heavy approach would also do no favours to their abysmal over rates which have already cost them World Test Championship points.

Australia have not gone into a Test without a specialist spinner since January 2012, but Lyon's absence, Murphy's relative inexperience and England's aggressive batting – leading to shorter bowling innings – are all factors that could see them do it again.

England's own spinner Moeen Ali has warned against such a move, though the numbers suggest Manchester has been the second-worst UK Test venue for spinners (behind Lord's) over the past five years.

"You have to play a spinner in a Test match no matter where it is, in my opinion, but Old Trafford especially," said Moeen, despite spinners taking 34 wickets at 42.94 at the ground since 2018.

Under Cummins and coach Andrew McDonald, the Aussies have previously flirted with unconventional team line-ups.

For the second Test against Sri Lanka in Galle last year, for instance, Glenn Maxwell was considered as a replacement for Mitchell Starc to add extra batting reinforcements after the series opener was played on a sharp-turning surface where runs were hard to come by.

A flatter second-Test pitch put paid to that idea. However, allrounder-heavy line-ups featuring Green and Marsh, which gives Australia batting all the way down to No.8, have been used in ODIs.

"Every situation is different. We’ve played games with one quick, we’ve played some games with heaps of quicks," said Cummins.

"It’s all really conditions based.

"As I said last week about Toddy, I would have loved to bowl him a bit more but there wasn’t a heap of overs in the game, the ball seemed to swing and seam a little bit, so that’s certainly something to weigh up this week."

Just as Warner's catching at first slip has been raised as a factor in his continued selection despite middling returns with the bat, so too could Green's superhuman catching feats help him win back his spot.

While Marsh was stationed in the gully for Australia's slips practice at training on Monday, Green later took catches there on his own in a spot where he has become the best fielder in the world in.

With the ball, the 24-year-old's extra height could also be an asset on an Old Trafford wicket that has been noted for its carry, with Steve Smith telling the Unplayable Podcast: "Here and the Oval are probably as close to Australia in terms of the pace and bounce you get out of the wicket."

As for Warner, Cummins said he "imagined" Australia's opening combination would "stay the same" and noted the 36-year-old scored a half-century in the second Test earlier this month.

"He’s been going really well. I thought at Lord’s he was really impressive," said Cummins.

"Last week, like many of us, he probably didn’t contribute as much as he would have liked with the bat.

"He’s been out there over the last couple of days putting in a lot of work, but I think this tour he has shown a lot of good signs and hasn’t quite kicked on to make that big score.

"But some of those innings he’s played under really tough circumstances has made it easy for Smith to come in and score runs, or the like."

2023 Qantas Ashes Tour of the UK

First Test: Australia won by two wickets

Second Test: Australia won by 43 runs

Third Test: England won by three wickets

Fourth Test: Wednesday July 19-Sunday July 23, Old Trafford

Fifth Test: Thursday July 27-Monday 31, The Oval

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith (vc), Mitchell Starc, David Warner

England squad: Ben Stokes (c), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood