Melbourne, Aug 22 (Inditop.com) Despite being sidelined for the entire Ashes series due to injuries, fast bowler Brett Lee has found a place in the 15-member Australian squad for the Champions Trophy in South Africa from Sep 22.
Cricket Australia (CA) national selection panel’s chairman Andrew Hilditch said the selectors decided to pick a squad which is similar to the Ashes team.
“The Champions Trophy is a key event on ICC’s cricket calendar and is a good opportunity for us to see how this new-look Australian one-day squad goes in its bid to retain the Trophy,” Hilditch said.
“The one-day team hasn’t played in a major tournament since the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup and this will be a good chance to see where we are at. The team is in a rebuilding phase and we look forward to seeing how this squad goes in England and South Africa as we prepare for the 2011 ICC World Cup in the subcontinent,” he said.
Australia are in Group A with India, West Indies and Pakistan. The defending champions will open their campaign against the West Indies, Sep 26.
The squad: Ricky Ponting (captain), Michael Clarke (vice captain), Nathan Bracken, Callum Ferguson, Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz, Ben Hilfenhaus, James Hopes, Michael Hussey, Mitchell Johnson, Brett Lee, Peter Siddle, Adam Voges, Shane Watson, Cameron White.