Mitchell Owen’s immediate international hopes have been put on hold, the all-rounder ruled out of Saturday’s deciding T20 in Cairns – and the three-match one-day series that follows – after a short-pitched ball from Kagiso Rabada crashed into the helmet grille in Darwin. Owen passed the on-field concussion check, only to report headaches later that evening. Under Cricket Australia’s return-to-play guidelines he now sits out for a minimum of 12 days, so any chance of an ODI debut disappears for the moment.
He is not the only absentee. Fast bowler Lance Morris has returned to Perth with lower-back soreness and will be assessed again next week, an unwelcome development given his previous spinal issues. Matt Short’s side strain, picked up in the Caribbean, has also failed to settle; what began as a precaution for the opening two T20s now rules him out of the entire South Africa tour.
Selectors have responded by promoting Western Australia pair Aaron Hardie and Cooper Connolly, plus Queensland left-arm spinner Matt Kuhnemann, for the 50-over leg. Hardie was already covering Short in the T20 group, while Kuhnemann, who last played an ODI in November 2022, offers a second spin option alongside Adam Zampa if conditions demand. Connolly – a left-hand batter who can bowl useful slow left-armers – impressed during the Champions Trophy semi-final against India earlier in the year and keeps his place in the wider pool.
South Africa levelled the T20 series on Tuesday with a 53-run victory, meaning Saturday’s game in Cairns decides that contest. The same ground stages the first ODI on 19 August, before the squads travel north to Mackay for matches on 22 and 24 August.
Josh Inglis missed the second T20 with flu-like symptoms; Alex Carey stepped in for his first T20 appearance since 2021 and remains on standby should Inglis not recover in time.
Updated Australia ODI squad
Mitchell Marsh (capt), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Adam Zampa.
Unavailable: Mitchell Owen (concussion), Lance Morris (back), Matt Short (side strain).
A tidy squad on paper, though the coaches would prefer fewer late changes. Still, Australia’s depth means they can field near-like-for-like replacements without ripping up the overall balance – pace spearheads in Hazlewood, Bartlett and Ellis, a batting spine in Head, Labuschagne and Marsh, and those twin spinners if Kuhnemann partners Zampa. How quickly the newcomers settle may well decide whether the home side can shrug off an injury-disrupted build-up and keep South Africa at arm’s length over the next fortnight.
