Potential Test debutant Josh Hazlewood is unsure whether his starring role in the one-day series against South Africa will preclude him from playing a Sheffield Shield match next week to bolster his selection claims.
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The 23-year-old leads the wickets tally for the Australia-South Africa meet with nine, one more than the Proteas' Morne Morkel, at an average of 14.66.
Hazlewood's exclusion from the preceding Twenty20 series had been expected to give him an opportunity to play in NSW's first two matches. But he featured only in round one against Victoria, as he was withdrawn from the Blues' round two team in favour of a training camp for the one-day squad.
While Hazlewood has impressed with the white ball against South Africa, the player he is seemingly vying with for a Test spot, Peter Siddle, mounted a strong case for retention for a sixth consecutive Gabba Test with a match haul of 7-85 for Victoria against South Australia.
That performance of Siddle, combined with 7-108 by Ryan Harris in his first-class comeback from knee surgery, strengthened the argument that Australia should begin the summer with the pace attack it used for all of last summer's Tests: Mitch Johnson, Harris and Siddle.
Neither haul surprised Hazlewood.
"Not at all – I expected that," he said. "Ryan's obviously a great bowler and he's back at it and hopefully can get through the next game and push his claims again, and 'Sidds' always bowls well and always takes wickets ... he's a fantastic bowler."
Hazlewood said he had no firm idea of his Test selection prospects beyond that he was "in the mix".
"I've obviously been going pretty well the past few weeks and obviously got that shield game early in the season, which was good. There's plenty of bowlers in the mix. We'll see how it goes," he said.
At 196 centimetres Hazlewood theoretically would be well equipped to secure steep bounce in Brisbane, for which India's batsmen would generally be unaccustomed. His record there, however, has not demonstrated that. In two matches he took two wickets at an average of 74.50 across 52 overs but he has not played a red-ball match there for three years.
Being rested from Sunday's series-ending one-dayer in Sydney could increase the chances of Hazlewood playing in the shield. The fast bowler said the result of Friday's match in Melbourne would probably influence such a decision.
"We're obviously up 2:1 at the moment but we'll see how it goes from here. It could be 2:2 after tomorrow or 3:1, so we'll take it as it comes," he said.
Hazlewood said securing a series victory over South Africa, either in the day-nighter at the MCG or Sunday's match at the SCG, would be a fillip for the World Cup campaign he aspires to be part of.
"It'd be massive, South Africa obviously being one of the favourites as well as us in the World Cup. To get them in a series beforehand and beat them ... [would be] quite a good boost for morale," he said.
Mitch Marsh will not play in either of the final two matches despite Cricket Australia abandoning a plan to send him home to Perth to prepare for a return to the shield next week. Because WA will be hosted by Victoria it was determined the all-rounder should stay in Melbourne, to save him having to take two cross-country flights.
Marsh has been replaced in the Australian squad by James Faulkner.
AUSTRALIA (from): George Bailey (c), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitch Starc, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Shane Watson.
SOUTH AFRICA (from): AB de Villiers (c), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock, Marchant de Lange, Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Vernon Philander, Rilee Rossouw, Dale Steyn.
