Sydney, Dec 18(ANI): Top Australian players, including opener David Warner, will be required to miss a vital warm-up game on the upcoming tour of India due to a scheduling overlap with this summer's one-day international series.
As part of preparations for their Ashes vengeance mission next July, Australia will embark on a four-Test tour of India and had originally been slated to play one three-day tour match in the lead-up to the first Test on February 22.
However with the Australians keen to acclimatize to sub-continental conditions, a second tour game has been organised, meaning the Test squad is now required to arrive in India on February 9, News.com.au reports.
That presents a problem for a group of Test players who are set to be named by selectors for short-form duty for Australia's fifth one-day clash against the West Indies at the MCG on February 10, the paper added.
It means the likes of Warner, rookie quick Mitchell Starc and glove man Matthew Wade face delaying their departures for India, in the process denying them a vital first-class hit out to prepare for the Test series opener in Delhi, it said.
Skipper Michael Clarke, deputy Shane Watson and Michael Hussey will also be ordered to stay behind to face the Windies, but the trio has extensive experience of Indian conditions, it further reported.
There is an additional a 20-over match against the Windies at the Gabba on February 13, although T20 regulars Watson and Hussey may be released after their 50-over commitments to be ready for the Indian showdown.
Players not expected to feature in the one-day squad, such as Ed Cowan, Phillip Hughes, Peter Siddle and Nathan Lyon, will head to India early to get a feel for local conditions in the opening tour game, the paper concluded. (ANI)
