AUSTRALIA AXE MAXWELL, WADE FROM ODI SQUAD VS ENGLAND

Glenn Maxwell and Matthew Wade were axed from Australia’s squad today for this month’s one-day international series against England.

Chief selector Trevor Hohns said ODI specialist Maxwell was omitted over consistency concerns, while Tim Paine takes the gloves from Wade following his outstanding form in the Ashes Test series. Selectors also named Australia’s Test pace trio Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins and Chris Lynn for the five-match series, starting in Melbourne on January 14.

Hohns said the selection panel wanted to have another look at Lynn, while seeking more consistency from Maxwell.

“No one is in any doubt about Glenn’s ability or his potential to produce match-winning contributions with the bat,” Hohns said.

“What we have wanted from him is more consistency but in his past 20 matches in this format he has averaged 22 and we need more than that from a player in the side’s batting engine room.”

He added that Maxwell was “still absolutely in our thoughts” but they opted for Lynn who is now back playing after a shoulder injury hampered him when he was picked against Pakistan 12 months ago.

“Chris has been one of the most feared players at domestic level in limited-overs cricket in the past couple of years and we want to see if he can convert that domestic form to the international stage,” said Hohns.

“With our defence of the ICC Cricket World Cup just 17 months away, we are seeking to get a squad in place that can form the basis of the line-up for that campaign,” Hohns said.

SYDNEY:

Australia: Steve Smith (capt), David Warner, Patrick Cummins, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Chris Lynn, Mitchell Marsh, Tim Paine, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa.