Gautam Gambhir, the Indian head coach confirmed during the pre-match press conference of the fifth Test that Akash won’t be a part of the XI due to a stiff back. The Bengal pacer scalped five wickets across two Tests in the ongoing series. However, he was unlucky to have missed out on a few scalps despite bowling consistently well during his 87.5 overs in the series.
“Akash Deep is out with a back issue,” Gambhir cited during the pre-match conference in Sydney.
Harshit Rana or Prasidh Krishna are likely to replace Akash in the XI with the former having earned his debut in the ongoing series. Harshit failed to impress in the first couple of matches in Perth and Adelaide
On the flip side, Australia have taken a tough call to leave out Marsh for the New Year’s Test at the SCG. He scored just 73 runs, picked three wickets in four Tests, and will be replaced by debutant Beau Webster. This seems more like a like-for-like replacement with the Tasmanian proving his developed batting along with bowling medium-fast.
“We have one change in our side: Beau Webster replaces Mitch Marsh. Mitch knows he hasn’t scored enough runs,” Cummins expressed ahead of the fifth Test.
Webster has been scintillating with both bat and ball in the past couple of domestic seasons. Following a Player of Tournament campaign in 2023/24, Webster has smashed 938 runs at an average of 58.62, coupled with 30 wickets at an average of 29.3.
