Australia stick with unchanged squad for SCG Test

Australia won't blood speedster Lance Morris in the third Test against Pakistan, sticking with the same 13-player squad for Sydney.

Selectors confirmed on Sunday there would be no change from the group that won by 79 runs in Melbourne, as they pursue a 3-0 clean sweep of the NRMA Insurance series at the SCG starting on Wednesday.

It means Scott Boland stays in the extended squad as a fourth fast bowler, while allrounder Cameron Green also remains as part of the group.

Morris had been viewed as a chance to debut this summer, but if that is to happen it will need to be against West Indies after he was left to keep playing in the KFC BBL.

Australia squad for Sydney Test: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

Coach Andrew McDonald had indicated that his battery of fast bowlers pulled up well from the win at the MCG, with a four-day gap between Tests.

"At this stage they have got through well," McDonald said on Saturday.

"As we sat down in the changeroom (on Friday), the feedback was good in terms of the bodies.

"In two days' time, we'll probably get a better handle on that."

A bigger call does await for selectors in the next fortnight, with a decision to be made on the retiring David Warner's replacement for the first Test against West Indies in Adelaide from January 17.

Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft and Matt Renshaw lead the list of contending openers, while selectors have not ruled out bringing in Green to fill the role or moving another player up the order.

"The NSP have retained the same squad from Melbourne to Sydney as we look to clean sweep the Test series," chief selector George Bailey said.

"We look forward to celebrating David Warner's final Test match and his incredible career at his home ground."

While the centrally-contracted Marcus Harris looms as the likely replacement, McDonald appeared to leave the door open for Cameron Green to move to the top of the Test order, refusing to limit the candidate pool to specialist openers.

"All options will be considered," McDonald said.

"We're not going to make the decision until the deadline, which would be the West Indies game.

"But yeah, Cameron Green, as a discussion around who are the best six batters, would definitely be in the discussion.

"(Warner is) going to be hard to replace, someone who strikes at 70 and averaging 45. He probably at the moment sits as probably our greatest all-three-format player.

"He'll be a loss. I know people have been gunning for him for a period of time, but for us internally we've seen the great value in what he brings to the table hence why we've kept picking him."

Harris hit a century in a Junction Oval tour match against Pakistan ahead of the Boxing Day Test, while Bancroft has been the Marsh Sheffield Shield's top run-scorer for the past season and a half.

Asked whether it would be an easier job for a specialist opener, Bancroft was adamant that was the case.

"Yeah, absolutely," he told AAP. "I've opened the batting in Shield cricket for over 10 years. It's not an easy place to bat. 

"It comes with challenges, and my whole career I've problem-solved trying to find ways to flourish in those sort of circumstances. 

"Some players have switched and gone and opened the batting and done really well. But not everyone puts their hand up to go and open the batting. 

"I feel like it probably is a specialist position and it's certainly a really challenging one. But a very rewarding one as well.

"I've had some conversations (with selectors) over the last 12 months or so and asked some questions about what I can do to improve. I'm always looking to improve and get better. I wanted that feedback from them.

"But I guess it always comes down to scoring runs, so I've just tried to go out and do the best I can no matter what format of the game that I've been playing."

NRMA Insurance Test series v Pakistan

First Test: Australia won by 360 runs

Second Test: Australia won by 79 runs

Third Test: January 3-7, SCG (10.30am AEDT)

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitch Marsh, Steve Smith, Mitch Starc, David Warner

Pakistan squad: Shan Masood (c), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Mir Hamza, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Mohammad Wasim Jnr, Saim Ayub, Salman Ali Agha, Sarfaraz Ahmed (wk), Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi