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West Australian all-rounder Hilton Cartwright has been brought into an extended 13-man squad for the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan next week.
Cartwright could replace the struggling Nic Maddinson, who has scored just five runs from three innings since making his debut earlier in the summer against South Africa.
The 24-year-old Cartwright has played just 16 first-class games for Western Australia but was called into Australia’s ODI squad for the recent Chappell-Hadlee series against New Zealand.
Australia had initially announced an unchanged squad for the second Test, however skipper Steve Smith did mention the possibility of bringing an all-rounder into the squad.
“I think an all-rounder will be talked about,” Smith said following the win over Pakistan at the Gabba.
Following his call-up to the squad, Cartwright’s name is now being thrown around as a possible debutant for the MCG.
“The bowlers got through a high workload in Brisbane and although everyone has pulled up okay, on reflection we wanted to give ourselves the option of including an all-rounder in Melbourne to ease that workload somewhat,” selector Trevor Hohns said.
“To do that we wanted a batting all-rounder, someone to bowl seam-up and capable of batting in the top six as well, and after considering several names we came to the conclusion that Hilton fits that bill.
“We have seen plenty of him, he has performed well this season and we believe that if called upon he will do an excellent job.”
Cartwright averages a touch over 44 with the bat for Western Australia in his short career with a pair of centuries to his name, but also has some handy right-arm medium pacers, able to pick up wickets with a consistent line and length.
The all-rounder debate has been firing on all cylinders for a while now. The omission of Mitch Marsh and the current exile of Glenn Maxwell has left a gap in the side, one which could be filled by the Zimbabwe-born Cartwright.
Australia’s squad for the second Test against Pakistan will come together on Thursday, December 22, while the exact make-up will be announced closer to the start of the Boxing Day Test.
Australian squad for Boxing Day Test against Pakistan
David Warner, Matt Renshaw, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith (c), Peter Handscomb, Nic Maddinson, Matthew Wade, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon, Jackson Bird, Chadd Sayers, Hilton Cartwright
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