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Travis Head Returns, Owen In As Marsh-Led Australia Announce Strong Squad For SA Tour

Soumyajit Dutta

Australia announces squad for South Africa's tour [Source: @surreyreal/X.com]Australia announces squad for South Africa's tour [Source: @surreyreal/X.com]

Rising allrounder Mitch Owen's impressive form has been rewarded with his first call-ups to Australia's white-ball squads for the upcoming series against South Africa. The 23-year-old, who starred in the BBL 14 and shone on debut in the Caribbean T20s with a blistering strike rate of 192.30, is named in both the T20I and ODI squads announced Wednesday.

Owen is the sole uncapped player across the two 14-man squads set to face the Proteas in three T20Is and three ODIs across Darwin, Cairns, and Townsville next month. Mitch Marsh will captain the ODI side in place of the rested Pat Cummins.

Strengthened Australia Squad Features Big Names

Travis Head, Josh Hazlewood, and Matt Short all return to the squads after missing parts of the West Indies tour. Head and Hazlewood were rested for the T20Is, while Short withdrew late from the Caribbean due to a side injury.

The ODI squad sees significant changes from the team that reached the Champions Trophy semi-finals in February, impacted by retirements and player availability. In an official statement to Cricket Australia, Adam Zampa highlighted the build-up towards the T20 World Cup. 

"We've been playing some really good cricket but our World Cups haven't gone to plan, the last couple. We've got a lot of new guys, new faces, new roles so getting them ready for whatever pops up in that T20 World Cup. It's all a build-up to that," leg-spinner Zampa told cricket.com.au. 

Bartlett and Morris, who debuted against the West Indies last year, are part of the planning for the next ODI World Cup in Southern Africa. The T20I series forms a crucial part of Australia's 11 scheduled matches before defending their title at the 2026 T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

Australia T20 squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Tim David, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matt Kuhnemann, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa

Australia ODI squad: Mitchell Marsh (c), Xavier Bartlett, Alex Carey, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Lance Morris, Mitchell Owen, Matthew Short, Adam Zampa