Agar set for lead role, but World Cup squeeze looms

Ashton Agar, the biggest casualty of Australia's overdue T20 World Cup success last year, looms as the major beneficiary of Adam Zampa's rare absence from the national side.

Captain Aaron Finch says Agar, a mainstay of the T20 line-up until Australia rejigged the balance of their team before their World Cup triumph in the UAE in November, will be the lead spinner for the upcoming three-T20, five-ODI campaigns against Sri Lanka in Colombo and Kandy.

The left-arm spinner was among those who trained for the first time on tour on Friday at the R Premadasa Stadium, with the bulk of the T20 squad having now touched down in the Sri Lankan capital.

Agar has never previously been to the island nation despite having Sri Lankan heritage through his mother Sonia, who left Colombo with her family when she was a teenager.

With Zampa to miss the tour due to the impending birth of his first child, the left-armer has the chance to press his case for Australia's World Cup defence at home later this year.

Image Id: 98891C8C54844238BA82522C8CE22140 Image Caption: Aaron Finch at training on Friday // cricket.com.au

"He's proved over the last couple of years that he's one best in the world in the T20 format for Australia," Finch said on Friday, four days out from the tour's opening match.

"The fact we've been able to win a World Cup having the strength of Ash not in the XI is super for the group.

"And what he's shown with his disappointment of missing out during that World Cup – his ability to bounce back and take his opportunities every time he's had them – shows the character of the person and shows what kind of a team man he is.

"He'll certainly get a lot of opportunities on this tour to play that frontline spinner role in both white-ball formats of the game."

Agar is also in the mix to pull on the Baggy Green for the first time in five years, with the Aussies open to fielding three spinners in spin-friendly Galle, which will host both Test matches.

Mitchell Swepson, who has also been named in all three squads, and Nathan Lyon are the incumbent spinners in the longest format.

But Agar's chances of displacing Zampa, who Australian players insist was the best bowler from any team at the World Cup last year, in either white-ball format appear slim in the immediate term.

Zampa has missed just three of Australia's 45 T20Is since the beginning of 2019, during which time he's played even more games than the skipper, Finch.

The fact only Zampa, Finch (39 T20Is over that period) and Matthew Wade (34) have played more often than Agar (28) among Australians during that time highlights how bold a move it was the drop the allrounder at the World Cup last year.

Returning to a dual spin attack of Zampa and Agar at this year's tournament remains a possibility for the Aussies, but Finch on Friday repeated his belief that picking just four specialist bowlers alongside allrounders Mitch Marsh, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis provides sufficient options.

"We played a lot over the last three years (before last year's World Cup) with two frontline spinners and we changed that pretty late to go with the three quicks the one spinner and then use our allrounders," said Finch.

"We feel as though that that's a really balanced side for T20 cricket, because we've still got seven genuine betters with (wicketkeeper) Matty Wade at seven.

"We saw the importance of that (allrounder) role throughout the World Cup … when the conditions suit, Maxwell's as good as a frontline spinner (and) Mitch Marsh and Marcus Stoinis's bowling is very underrated in T20 cricket as well."

Apart from Zampa, Pat Cummins is other only other member of Australia's World Cup-winning side who will miss the T20 series in Sri Lanka, with the Test skipper being rested.

Stoinis, Maxwell, Wade, David Warner and Josh Hazlewood, whose Indian Premier League teams made the playoffs and were subsequently given extra time at home, are the last remaining squad members set to arrive on Friday evening.

Qantas Tour of Sri Lanka, 2022

Sri Lanka T20 squad: Dasun Shanaka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Danushka Gunathilaka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Nuwanidu Fernando, Lahiru Madushanka, Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Kasun Rajitha, Nuwan Thushara, Matheesha Pathirana, Ramesh Mendis, Maheesh Theekshana, Praveen Jayawickrama, Lakshan Sandakan. Standby: Jeffrey Vandersay, Niroshan Dickwella

Australia T20 squad: Aaron Finch (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner, Matthew Wade

June 7: First T20, Colombo

June 8: Second T20, Colombo

June 11: Third T20, Kandy

Sri Lanka ODI squad (provisional): Dasun Shanaka (c), Danushka Gunathilaka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis, Charith Asalanka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dhananjaya De Silva, Ashen Bandara, Dinesh Chandimal, Niroshan Dickwella, Janith Liyanage, Dunith Wellalage, Dhananjaya Lakshan, Sahan Arachchi, Wanindu Hasaranga, Chamika Karunaratne, Lahiru Madushanka, Ramesh Mendis, Dushmantha Chameera, Binura Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, Jeffrey Vandersay, Maheesh Theekshana, Praveen Jayawickrama

Australia ODI squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

June 14: First ODI, Kandy

June 16: Second ODI, Kandy

June 19: Third ODI, Colombo

June 21: Fourth ODI, Colombo

June 24: Fifth ODI, Colombo

Sri Lanka Test squad (provisional): Dimuth Karunaratne (c), Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Oshada Fernando, Kusal Mendis, Angelo Mathews, Dhananjaya De Silva, Kamindu Mendis, Niroshan Dickwella, Dinesh Chandimal, Chamika Karunaratne, Ramesh Mendis, Mohamed Shiraz, Shiran Fernando, Dilshan Madushanka, Lahiru Kumara, Kasun Rajitha, Vishwa Fernando, Asitha Fernando, Jeffrey Vandersay, Lakshitha Rasanjana, Praveen Jayawickrama, Lasith Embuldeniya, Suminda Lakshan

Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Ashton Agar, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, David Warner

June 29 - July 3: First Test, Galle

July 8-12: Second Test, Galle

Australia A fixtures

Squad: Sean Abbott, Scott Boland, Pete Handscomb, Aaron Hardie, Marcus Harris, Travis Head, Henry Hunt, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Nic Maddinson, Todd Murphy, Josh Philippe, Matt Renshaw, Jhye Richardson, Tanveer Sangha, Mark Steketee

June 8: First one-day game v Sri Lanka A, Colombo

June 10: Second one-day game v Sri Lanka A, Colombo

June 14-17: first-class tour match v Sri Lanka A, Hambantota

June 21-24: first-class tour match v Sri Lanka A, Hambantota