Renshaw only change; Australia name XI shortly after Cummins’ call for time

On Friday, Australia captain Pat Cummins had initially said they would take another day to decide whether to field four quicks or retain Nathan Lyon for the second Test against Bangladesh but there was little waiting in the end, with Australia’s XI confirmed just minutes after he spoke.

Matthew Renshaw was the only change, replacing Jake Weatherald at the top of the order, while Lyon retained his place for the second Test against Bangladesh at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay.

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“Trying to give it another day to see whether it's four quicks or a spinner,” Cummins initially told reporters at the venue.

Selectors then convened pitch-side shortly after Cummins spoke and confirmed Lyon had held his spot.

Australia had twice played all-seam attacks in pink-ball Tests in 2025, but the last time they left a fit Lyon out of their XI for a red-ball Test was 14 years ago at the WACA Ground.

Lyon's retention means Australia will keep the same bowling attack that played in Darwin, where Bangladesh secured a nine-wicket victory. Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood will lead the pace attack, with Lyon providing the spin option.

Renshaw, meanwhile, returns to Test cricket for the first time since 2023. The 29-year-old has been recalled in place of Weatherald after the latter's only Test appearance, and will return to the opening position where he scored a century against Pakistan in 2016-17 as a 20-year-old.

Renshaw also has two first-class centuries at the Mackay venue.

Australia have otherwise resisted wholesale changes after their heavy defeat in Darwin, retaining Marnus Labuschagne at No. 3 despite his prolonged run of poor form.

Cummins acknowledged that Australia were well below their best in the opening Test but gave Bangladesh credit for their performance.

“A lot of people jump to say that, ‘You have to win everything’ – and obviously we hope we do,” Cummins said. “Particularly home Test matches, we pride ourselves on winning as many as we can.

“We were nowhere near our best. But I think Bangladesh played really well. They're a really good cricket team.”

The uncertainty over Lyon's place was largely driven by the conditions at a venue hosting its first Test. Australia have been examining footage from an Australia A-India A match played at the ground two years ago for clues about how the surface might behave.

Cummins said the pitch in that match appeared to become better for batting as the game progressed, although he cautioned that it was only one piece of information.

“Looked like it kind of got better to bat on the longer the game went on, but it's a couple of years ago,” he said. “You take it as data, but it's not the (only factor affecting the selection) decision.

“It's largely conditions based.”

That first-class match is one of only three played at the venue in the past decade. None was played as early in the year as this weekend's Test, with curator Peter Kazakoff suggesting the cooler weather could make the surface retain moisture for longer.

“Obviously, those first-class games were a bit later in the year when it was a bit warmer,” Kazakoff said. “It's a lot cooler this time of year, so the moisture will come out of the wicket less, and slower.”

Australia XI: Matthew Renshaw, Travis Head, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Beau Webster, Pat Cummins (c), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.