Australia will head into the second fixture of the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka on Wednesday (October 30) without Mitchell Starc, who will be away to attend his brother’s wedding. In Starc’s absence, Billy Stanlake and Sean Abbott will be in a two-way tussle for the vacant spot in the second game at the Gabba.
Both Abbott and Stanlake come into the series with identical outings in the Marsh One-Day cup, picking five wickets each in as many fixtures for New South Wales and Queensland, with the former finishing with a better average and economy rate.
Stanlake, however, has been part of the Australia squad more recently and has made a comeback from injury that saw him miss a T20 Blast stint with Derbyshire in July-August this year. Abbott, who has played one ODI and one T20I for Australia back in 2014, wasn’t picked initially but came in as a replacement for the injured Andrew Tye.
Having started off their home summer in emphatic style with a 134-run win in the first T20I, Australia will head into the second fixture with the opportunity to pocket the series even before it gets to the last fixture.
