Australia and India name squads for ICC Champions Trophy
World Champions Australia, and India have named their squads for the ICC Champions Trophy.
Cricket Australia today announced that the National Selection Panel (NSP) has chosen a 14-man squad to represent Australia at the International Cricket Council (ICC) Champions Trophy, to be played in England this September.
Paceman Brett Lee returns to the Australian side
Selection sees New South Wales paceman Brett Lee return to the Australian line-up for the first time since the Travelex Tour of Sri Lanka , when he was forced home with an injured left ankle.
Lee, who underwent surgery in March, has been declared fit by Cricket Australia medical staff after undergoing extensive rehabilitation.
Commenting on his return, Lee said: ?I have been working really hard since the setback in Sri Lanka . After the initial disappointment of that injury, I focussed all my energies into getting back for the ICC Champions Trophy, which is really the only one-day tournament that has so far eluded us.
?I have been doing a lot of work during my time away from competitive cricket with Dennis Lillee at the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane , which has helped me enormously.
?I guess the whole break has given me a chance to reflect on the past five years and assess where my career is at.
?The ankle feels fine, my body feels fresh and I just can't wait to pull on an Australian uniform again,? he said.
NSP Chairman Trevor Hohns said selectors had been keeping close watch on Lee's recovery and were satisfied with the medical reports received.
?We have been monitoring Brett's progress since March and having spoken to the medicos, and seen Brett go through his paces in Brisbane recently, we are confident that he is back to full strength,? Hohns said.
?He is a quality bowler who will give the pace attack some real depth and variety for this very important tournament,? he said.
Hohns said that selectors had chosen an experienced squad for the ICC Champions Trophy, which will see Australia play pool matches against the United States of America and New Zealand .
?With the entire playing list given a clean bill of health by our medical staff, we have been able to choose, what we feel, is our strongest squad,? said Hohns.
?This is a very important tournament for this side, as Australia aims to defend its place as the leader in one-day international cricket. We feel that this is the best squad to meet that challenge.
?Several of the players have been playing county cricket in the UK , so the conditions they will face during the tournament will not be foreign to them,? he said.
Squad: Ricky Ponting(capt), Adam Gilchrist (vcapt), Michael Clarke, Jason Gillespie, Ian Harvey, Matthew Hayden, Brad Hogg, Michael Kasprowicz, Brett Lee, Darren Lehmann, Damien Martyn, Glen McGrath, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson.
