Captain Cummins, Hazlewood ruled out of Champions Trophy

Australia will need to make four changes to their preliminary squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy with confirmation skipper Pat Cummins and fellow fast bowler Josh Hazlewood have been ruled out of the tournament.

The news came on the same day allrounder Marcus Stoinis announced his retirement from ODI cricket effective immediately, meaning he must also be replaced in the final squad that will be announced following the end of the current Test match at Galle.

Allrounder Mitchell Marsh had already been withdrawn from the squad as he struggled to recover from a debilitating back injury that has worsened while he has undertaken rehabilitation in recent weeks.

Cummins has not recovered from the ankle issue that plagued him towards the end of the recent Border Gavaskar Trophy Test series against India, while Hazlewood has developed a hip problem following earlier hip and calf strains.

Both fast bowlers will require an extended period of rehabilitation before they receive the all-clear to return to play, which places a question mark over their involvement in the Indian Premier League which follows the Champions Trophy.

Australia's next international men's commitment after the upcoming ICC tournament is the World Test Championship final against South Africa at Lord's in mid-June.

"Unfortunately Pat, Josh and Mitch are managing some ongoing injuries and haven’t come up in time for the Champions Trophy," national selection panel chair George Bailey said today.

"While disappointing, it does present a great opportunity for other players to perform for Australia in a world event."

Andrew McDonald, flagging the pace pair's unlikeliness to make the Champions Trophy, has suggested Steve Smith and Travis Head as the options to replace Cummins as skipper.

As a result of the injury issues and Stoinis's shock announcement, a number of additional players will travel to Colombo for the two-game ODI series that immediately follow the second Test at Galle.

Emerging leg spinner Tanveer Sangha has been in Galle for almost a week and has joined the Test squad, and he will remain in Sri Lanka for the ODIs with the prospect of becoming a travelling reserve for the Champions Trophy.

Fellow Test squad members Sean Abbott and Cooper Connolly – who today made his Test debut as Baggy Green Cap number 471 – will also stay on for potential involvement in the ODIs in Colombo.

In addition, top-order batter Jake Fraser-McGurk, seam-bowling allrounder Ben Dwarshuis and left-arm paceman Spencer Johnson will also join the ODI squad in the Sri Lankan capital for games on February 12 and 14.

Johnson has played two ODIs and eight T20 internationals and is seen as a like-for-like replacement for Test quick Mitchell Starc who is not expected to take part in the Sri Lanka ODIs.

Fraser-McGurk played the most recent of his five ODIs for Australia against Pakistan at Perth last November, and recorded scores of 16, 13 and seven in that three-match series won by the touring team.

The 22-year-old also failed to pass 20 in the subsequent three-game T20I campaign against Pakistan but exploded into form in the final match of the BBL|14 regular season with 95 from 46 balls faced for Melbourne Renegades.

Dwarshuis' only previous ODI for Australia came against England at Trent Bridge during last year's white-ball tour of the UK.

The 30-year-old, who has also played three T20 internationals in Pakistan (2022) and India (2023), bowled just four overs in his sole 50-over appearance for Australia in a match where Mitchell Marsh's team deployed eight bowlers.

While the two-game ODI series in Colombo immediately after completion of the second Test at Galle stands alone as a formal competition, its broader purpose is to allow both teams some 50-over match practice prior to the tournament starting in Pakistan.

Australia's first game of the upcoming tournament will be against England at Lahore on February 22, with the final of the eight-team competition scheduled for March 9 at a venue to be decided.

Should the current Test defy expectation and run into its fifth day, there will be less than 48 hours for the competing teams to make the two-hour road trip to the Sri Lanka capital before play starts in the first ODI at Premadasa Stadium.

2025 ICC Men's Champions Trophy

Australia's Group B fixtures

February 22: Australia v England, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

February 25: Australia v South Africa, Rawalpindi (8pm AEDT)

February 28: Afghanistan v Australia, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 4: Semi-final 1, Dubai (8pm AEDT)

March 5: Semi-final 2, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 9: Final, Lahore or Dubai (8pm AEDT)

Australia preliminary squad: Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa (four players to be added)