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The 2021 T20 World Cup champions made some surprising exclusions from their squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and the USA, omitting veteran batter Steve Smith, young talent Jake Fraser-McGurk, seamer Jason Behrendorff and all-rounder Matt Short.
Ashton Agar has earned a recall despite not featuring in a T20I since the last T20 World Cup in 2022, while Marcus Stoinis, Tim David, Cameron Green and Glenn Maxwell will join the squad as all-round options.
Selection chair George Bailey expressed confidence in the team's balance, anticipating a strong performance in the tournament's ninth edition.
"We believe Ashton can play a critical role in this tournament along with Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Cam Green and Mitch Marsh in complementing our front-line attack options. The batting options available allow a tailored approach to each venue and opponent," he added.
Bailey acknowledged that the squad's limited size of 15 meant several deserving players missed out.
"Being constrained to a squad of 15 for World Cups is always a challenge given the different scenarios and options we’d like to cover. We will continue monitoring several players who have missed out on this preliminary squad and note that if we wish to change this squad, we have the option to do so over the coming weeks in accordance with ICC regulations.
"Ultimately the balance of the final 15 needs to provide the best chance of being successful in this campaign," he said.
The Australian squad is set to touch down in the Caribbean by late May, kicking off their World Cup campaign against Oman. This will be followed by matches against England, Namibia, and Scotland.
Australia’s T20 World Cup squad:
Mitch Marsh (c), Ashton Agar, Pat Cummins, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa.
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