Australia have named a 13-member squad for the three T20Is against Pakistan, to be played at Brisbane on November 14, Sydney on November 16, and Hobart on November 18.

The squad does not include Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, Travis Head, Steve Smith, or even regular T20I captain Mitchell Marsh, all of whom are likely to feature in the five-match Test series against India, which will begin four days after the third T20I. However, the now-fit Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, and Spencer Johnson are all part of the squad.

“This group of players have all represented Australia in T20 cricket, so we look forward to them continuing to enhance their international experience throughout this series.” said chair of selectors George Bailey.

One curious feature of the squad is the lack of an official captain, which left some bemused.

An ESPNcricinfo report mentioned that the captain will be named “closer to the series”. Among the Australian T20I captains till date, only Smith, Matthew Wade, Marsh, and Head are active, and none of them is part of the squad.

They may name 36-year-old Glenn Maxwell, Australia’s most-capped cricketer in the format with 113 games; or Adam Zampa, four years younger but joint-fourth on the list of national T20I caps (92); or they may look at a younger candidate with an eye on the future.

Pakistan, on the other hand, will have a new captain (Mohammad Rizwan) and a new vice-captain (Salman Ali Agha) for the same series.

Australia T20I squad for Pakistan series:

Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Glenn Maxwell, Matthew Short, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.

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