Australian wicketkeeper Brad Haddin has been left out of the NSW Sheffield Shield team to face Tasmania in Hobart starting on Monday.
Haddin will captain the Prime Minister’s XI against Sri Lanka on Friday in Canberra, ruling him out of the Blues’ one-day clash with the Tigers on Saturday.
However, the under-pressure Test keeper will also be rested from the four-day fixture at the request of Cricket Australia.
Chief national selector John Inverarity said earlier in the week that Haddin had been rested from the opening matches of the upcoming triangular one-day series featuring India and Sri Lanka because of his heavy workload.
Haddin responded on radio by saying he believed he’d been dropped for Victorian Matthew Wade and said he would have to fight to win his ODI spot back.
It’s been speculated Wade and Haddin will both tour the West Indies next month and, after a lean summer, the 34-year-old Haddin could have done with some time in the middle in the Shield match to play himself back into form.
However, Cricket Australia’s insistence on Haddin being rested indicates he is still the first preference as Australian keeper, particularly at Test level.
It’s the first game back in both formats for NSW and Tasmania after the long break for the Big Bash League.
The Tigers are third in the Shield and second in the one-day cup after six matches, while NSW are fifth out of six in both competitions.
NSW welcome Phil Hughes, Usman Khawaja, Steve O’Keefe and Scott Coyte back into their Shield and one-day squads, while four-day incumbents Steve Smith and Simon Katich make their returns to the 50-over team as well.
O’Keefe will resume as NSW captain after Smith had skippered the Sydney Sixers in the BBL.
Meanwhile, Shaun Marsh’s terrible Test form for Australia gives incentive to fallen stars Khawaja and Hughes to win back their Test top-order spots for the tour of the West Indies.
One-day cup squad: Stephen O’Keefe (capt), Trent Copeland, Scott Coyte, Nathan Hauritz, Moises Henriques, Phil Hughes, Simon Katich, Usman Khawaja, Nic Maddinson, Peter Nevill, Ben Rohrer, Steve Smith.
Shield squad: Stephen O’Keefe (capt), Trent Copeland, Scott Coyte, Nathan Hauritz, Moises Henriques, Phil Hughes, Simon Katich, Usman Khawaja, Josh Lalor, Peter Nevill, Ben Rohrer, Steve Smith.
