Cape Town [South Africa], October 26 (ANI): Australia have released Nic Maddinson and Sam Harper from their Test squad to join their respective teams for the Sheffield Shield, while Steven Smith faces a fitness test ahead of the third and deciding Test against South Africa in Cape Town, reported Cricinfo.
Maddinson will return to Australia to represent New South Wales in their next Shield match, starting Friday, while Harper will join Victoria for their game against Queensland, beginning Saturday.
Harper had been called up as wicketkeeping cover after Josh Inglis suffered a fractured finger. Inglis has since been cleared to resume wicketkeeping duties should Alex Carey face any issues.
Maddinson's departure follows scores of 0, 48, 0 and 8 across his four innings in the series after his surprise recall. His omission is expected to pave the way for Matt Renshaw to return to the top of the order alongside Travis Head.
However, Australia's final playing XI will also depend on Smith's fitness. The experienced batter was troubled by a neck problem during the second Test in Gqeberha and needs to complete a full net session on Monday to be considered for the series decider.
Smith batted for just 15 minutes on Sunday against side-arm throws from Michael Di Venuto without wearing his helmet.
"We feel like it's going to be a pretty steep progression in terms of [whether] he should be available," head coach Andrew McDonald said, as per Cricinfo. "But if we're surprised today, you'll see that play out."
Australia's selectors were scheduled to finalise the playing XI on Monday morning, ahead of the team's final training session at Newlands in the afternoon.
If Smith is ruled out, Marnus Labuschagne is likely to retain his place at No. 3 amid ongoing questions about his form and position in the batting order.
Chair of selectors George Bailey acknowledged Labuschagne's difficulty in converting starts into substantial scores but pointed to his ability to spend time at the crease.
"I don't know if I've got anything further to add than I think everyone's said over the last [period of time]," Bailey said, as per Cricinfo.
He further added, "We've seen some good things. Is there a block at the moment around the 30s? Yes. [He's] still contributing in terms of his ability to get through a number of balls. So it's a decision around what does that look like if he gets through [to the 30s] again, what does it look like for the collective and is it helping others around him [and] the team get a result that we ultimately want?"
Bailey also backed the decision to bring Maddinson on the tour, stressing that his omission would not necessarily end his Test career.
"I think performance-wise… would you like more runs in it? Yes. So that's okay," Bailey said, as per Cricinfo. "It did allow us to set the rest of the team up the way that we wanted to whilst we were working with the group we have, yes."
"We always talk about what do we see when we see players that are best. I think you saw a glimpse of that in the second innings in Durban. So there's a message for him. With him going home, I wanted to be clear to him it wasn't a stopgap and that's it and it's a discard. The same reasons and process we worked through to get him to be on the table for here and ultimately to play, they'll be the same questions that we'll ask across the home summer to India as well," he concluded.
The series is level at 1-1, with the third Test in Cape Town set to decide the winner. (ANI)
Australia release Maddinson, Harper ahead of Cape Town Test; Smith faces fitness test
