Australia white-ball captain Mitchell Marsh has given a small hint on his Test return for the Ashes after head coach Andrew McDonald made it clear that the explosive opener was in the scheme of things.
Marsh is currently focusing on the T20 match against India, which starts on Wednesday. Josh Philippe is likely to play for Australia after Matt Short was ruled out with a finger injury, while Ben McDermott has joined the team as cover for Short.
Mitchell Marsh is ready for a Test return after a fantastic season in limited overs cricket
Mitchell Marsh has not played a game in the longest format of the game since the Boxing Day Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in 2024. However, he is now in line for a Test comeback due to his commendable performance in limited overs cricket.
Notably, he averages over 60 in ODIs and 71.5 in the shortest format of the game in 2025, and all such records have come after being appointed captain of Australia in the absence of Pat Cummins.
Marsh is one such player in the Australian line-up who can play very aggressive cricket like the English baseballers.
Mitchell Marsh expecting a month off after India series
Ahead of the first T20I in Canberra, Australian captain Mitchell Marsh said a Test return was never in his plans, but it could happen if things go right.
“To be honest, I was expecting a month off after this,” Marsh joked. Marsh said, “To be honest, I have not given it much thought. Our white-ball tour schedule has been very busy. At the moment my focus is only on this series.”
“I love playing for Western Australia, so we’ll see where it goes at the end of this series.” Mitchell Marsh will return to the Test team only as a specialist batsman, as he did not bowl a single spell with the ball in his last few Test matches due to fitness problems.
“We still haven’t given up on Mitch Marsh’s Test career,” said Andrew McDonald.
Mitchell Marsh has a solid record against England, with all three of his Test centuries coming in Ashes series. So, despite there being doubts over Marsh’s return, Australian head coach Andrew McDonald has kept him in the scheme of things.
“We haven’t given up on Mitch Marsh’s Test career yet,” McDonald said on Monday.
“So what will the preparation be like for him? It will be white ball or maybe some Shield cricket after the white ball, if he is not in that first team, and then [he] Through that he can stake his claim.
“There’s the shield [rounds] Five and six also when we are playing Test matches, where the players who are not in the first Test will obviously go to work,” the Australian head coach said.
Also read: Veteran Australian captain calls Rohit Sharma the ‘most underrated’ white-ball captain