Steve Smith has been cleared to lead Australia in the Boxing Day Test after fully recovering from an inner ear problem, but the hosts will wait until the morning of the match to name their final XI for the fourth Ashes Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. With the Ashes already secured, Australia enter the marquee Test without regular skipper Pat Cummins and injured off-spinner Nathan Lyoninstead, he decided to assess the conditions before completing their combination.
Speaking after Australia’s final training session on Christmas Day, Smith said the selectors wanted to take another close look at the pitch before making a final call. The surface, which Smith described as “quite hairy” and carries around 10mm of grass, is expected to offer plenty of fast bowlers, especially with cool and cloudy conditions forecast for the first day.
“I had a couple of bad days before the (Adelaide) Test and the first few days (of the match) all my vestibular stuff settled down…It was a shame to miss it, it looked like a pretty nice wicket to bat on,” Smith said.
“The first two days I was watching in the hotel and I wished I could have been there but I was, it was the right call at that stage (because) I was struggling,” he added.
Australia XII: Travis Head, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (c), Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey (wk), Cameron Green, Mitchell Starc, Scott Boland, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser, Jhye Richardson.
Australia will be without a specialist spinner, delaying Todd Murphy’s home Boxing Day Test hopes. Instead, Brendan Doggett, Michael Neser and Jhye Richardson compete for the last pace spots along with Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland. Richardson, who is returning from a long injury lay-off, is closing in on his first Test appearance in almost four years.
Smith was delighted with Richardson’s return, noting his proven impact at the highest level. The substitute also confirmed that Australia have already settled on their 12, with the final eleven to be selected after a final wicket check on Thursday morning.
Smith’s return to the side prompted a minor change in the batting order. Josh Inglis misses out while Usman Khawaja retains his place after scores of 82 and 40 in the third Test. Khawaja is set to bat at No.5, the first time in that position since his memorable double century during his Ashes comeback series nearly four years ago.
Australia will be keen to retain the opening partnership of Travis Head and Jake Weatherald after Head’s second century of the series in the previous Test. Alex Carey will continue at No.6 after his match-winning 106 and 72 in a convincing Ashes win, with Cameron Green batting seven.
Smith said he felt “100 per cent” after being late on the opening morning of the previous Test and is ready to lead as Australia aim to maintain their dominance at the MCG despite the changes being forced.
– The end
Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
December 25, 2025
