Australia recall Stoinis, Richardson and Agar for the first T20I against England

Australia's frontline bowlers rested for the Perth T20I, (PC- Twitter)

Cricket Australia's men's selectors on Thursday made wholesale changes in their squad bringing in Marcus Stoinis, Kane Richardson, Ashton Agar, Mitchell Swepson, and Nathan Ellis for the first match of the three-match T20I Series against England starting in Perth on Sunday.

Australian selectors have opted not to send the first-choice bowling attack to Perth for the first T20I clash with England to limit their workload heading into the World Cup defence in November. Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Pat Cummins, and Adam Zampa will remain on the east coast in Canberra to continue their World Cup preparation.

These bowlers along with all-rounder Glenn Maxwell will return for the second and third T20Is against England in Canberra. All-rounder Cameron Green remains in the squad for the England series as he counties 

Leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson has been drafted in for the Perth game in Zampa's absence. He is notably the only player not retained in the World Cup squad that won the tournament in the United Arab Emirates last year.

“The high-performance team and selectors have planned these matches to ensure our squad get to the World Cup fresh and ready to perform. Some squad members travelled to Perth early to begin preparations slightly earlier than the main squad and a handful of others will not make the trip to Perth. 

With some players remaining on the east coast, it provides further opportunity for Nathan Ellis and Daniel Sams who both performed well in India. Likewise, Mitchell Swepson was a part of last year’s World Cup squad and continues to provide good depth in our T20 spin bowling department," said chief selector George Bailey.

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