Cricket Australia announced contract list of 21 players for the 2026-27 season on Wednesday, which saw young opener Sam Konstas and veteran allrounder Glenn Maxwell dropped from the list.
Asutralia are scheduled to play 20 Tests in a 12-month period from August. The 31-year-old opener Jake Weatherald was preferred over out-of-form 20-year-old Konstas.
With a Test-heavy calendar ahead, Australia have axed Maxwell and Matt Short from last year’s list along with retired opener Usman Khawaja and injured fast bowler Lance Morris.
However, the surprise exclusion was that of fast bowler Jhye Richardson, who played his first Test in four years in the Boxing Day Ashes match. Cricket Australia have instead brought in Brendan Doggett, 31, and the 36-year-old Michael Neser.
“The next 12 months encompasses a busy Test schedule across a range of conditions and challenges,” said chair of men’s selectors George Bailey.
“This is reflected in the contract list through a predominance of Test and multi-format players for this cycle.”
Australia will begin their 2026–27 season with a two-match home series against Bangladesh in August.
After that, they travel to Zimbabwe for a three-match ODI series. The team will then head to South Africa for a longer tour featuring three ODIs and three Tests in September and October.
Australia will return home to host England in a white-ball series. This will be followed by a busy Test schedule, with 10 matches packed into 14 weeks. The run starts with a four-Test home series against New Zealand in December and January.
Next, Australia will tour India for a five-Test series starting on January 21. The season will wrap up with a special one-off Test against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March 2027, marking the 150th anniversary of Test cricket.
Cricket Australia contracted men’s players 2026-27:
Xavier Bartlett, Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Brendan Doggett, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Todd Murphy, Michael Neser, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Jake Weatherald, Beau Webster, Adam Zampa.
