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Mitchell Swepson laments death of spin as Australia go pace-heavy in SCG Test

Soumyajit Dutta

Mitchell Swepson laments the lack of spin in the Ashes [Source: @7Cricket/X]Mitchell Swepson laments the lack of spin in the Ashes [Source: @7Cricket/X]

The debate over the role of frontline spinners in Test cricket has grown stronger after both Australia and England overlooked specialist spin options during the ongoing Ashes series.

While Nathan Lyon featured briefly in the 2025–26 Ashes, Australia leg-spinner Mitchell Swepson took a swipe at the increasing trend of preparing pitches that heavily favour seam bowling.

Notably, Australia are playing the SCG Test without a specialist spinner for the first time in 138 years, having ignored Lyon’s injury replacement Todd Murphy.

Mitchell Swepson takes a jibe at Australia Cricket

Mitchell Swepson, who has played four Tests for Australia, spoke about the declining presence of spin bowling in the longest format, a trend he feels has also crept into Sheffield Shield cricket.

"I won't be careful - it sucks. I'm obviously biased, but I think we've seen it coming in Sheffield Shield cricket. We see less and less spin bowlers coming into the game, particularly in certain parts of the country, and that's what we're now seeing a little bit with the Test arena,” Swepson said.

Mitchell Swepson was particularly critical of curators opting for greener wickets that assist fast bowlers, leaving little or no support for spinners. Swepson suggested that Australian cricket now appears more focused on preparing pitches that produce draws rather than results through early wickets.

“We're seeing greener wickets and seam being the main source of wickets, and it's such a shame because there's definitely a spot for spin bowling in Test cricket,” Swepson added.

“I grew up watching Shane Warne bowl around the wicket into pizzas at the SCG and Stuart MacGill ragging them sideways. It would be nice to bring that back, but with the way it's going at the moment, it looks like we're going further and further away from that with the wickets that we're producing,” Swepson concluded.

Swepson as a nifty Australia spinner

Meanwhile, despite having only four Test appearances for Australia so far, Mitchell Swepson remains keen on returning to the national setup. He has taken 10 wickets in those matches at an average of 45.80 and an economy rate of 3.08 from 892 deliveries.

In first-class cricket, he has claimed 279 wickets from 161 innings, maintaining a strike rate of 65.7.