Australia Announces Team Changes for West Indies Test Series Opener

BRIDGETOWN: Cricket Australia (CA) has revealed the men’s team’s lineup for the first Test against the West Indies, set to begin on Wednesday. This three-match series will be played away from home.

The squad selection sees the inclusion of young top-order batsman Sam Konstas, who previously debuted in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) against India on home soil last year.

Despite a promising performance in his initial two Test matches, the 19-year-old was subsequently rested for the away series versus Sri Lanka and the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final against South Africa, which took place at Lord’s earlier in June.

Konstas takes the place of Labuschagne. Following a promotion to open the innings alongside Usman Khawaja, Labuschagne recorded scores of 17 and 22, leading to his exclusion from the Test series against the West Indies.

In addition to Konstas, wicketkeeper-batsman Josh Inglis is set to rejoin the Test side, stepping in for experienced player Steve Smith. Smith sustained a compound dislocation of his right little finger during the recent Test against South Africa.

Significantly, this marks the first instance since December 2018 where both Smith and Labuschagne are absent from Australia’s starting XI for a Test match.

The remainder of the Australian team remains the same, despite their five-wicket loss to South Africa in the WTC 2023-25 final.

This upcoming series holds importance for both Australia and the West Indies as they start their campaigns in the WTC 2025-27.

Australia’s XI for the first Test against West Indies: Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Cameron Green, Josh Inglis, Travis Head, Beau Webster, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins (C), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, and Josh Hazlewood.