In short, Hardie joins the experienced Australian team for the Champs Trophy

Matt Short and Aaron Hardie have earned their first national call-up to an ICC event as Australian selectors named an all-rounder-heavy squad for next month's Champions Trophy.

Australia's two-time winners of the 50-over event today named a squad of 15 players for the tournament to be held in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates. There is no room for Jake Fraser-McGurk after a poor run of scores this summer.

Nathan Ellis has earned a place after leading Hobart Hurricanes to the KFC BBL|14 final, one of three substitutes alongside Short and Hardie from the side that won the ODI World Cup 14 months ago. David Warner (retired), Cameron Green (back surgery) and Sean Abbott are the players who need to make way.

Australian squad for Champions Trophy: Pat Cummins (c), Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa

Pat Cummins will lead the side but his participation in the tournament remains under a cloud after selection chairman George Bailey revealed he had suffered an ankle problem during Australia's 3-1 Border-Gavaskar Trophy win.

The ICC instructed the eight participating countries to name their preliminary 15-man squads five weeks before the start of the tournament on February 19, but teams are allowed to make changes up to a week before the first match. Any changes after that date will require ICC approval.

Australia have been drawn in Group B alongside Afghanistan, England and South Africa, with all their round robin matches being played in Pakistan in Lahore and Rawalpindi.

Test and ODI captain Cummins was already on the Test tour of Sri Lanka ahead of the Champions Trophy to stay home where wife Becky was about to give birth to the couple's second child.

Fellow quick Josh Hazlewood (calf) and all-rounder Mitch Marsh (omitted) have also returned for the Champions Trophy after missing out on selection for the Sri Lanka Tests.

The same side will play Sri Lanka in a one-off ODI in the southern port city of Hambantota, three days after the second Test in Galle, which will be the side's only warm-up match ahead of their tournament opener against England in Lahore in February. 22.

“This is a balanced and experienced squad whose core was involved in the previous one-day World Cup, the West Indies series, last year's successful tour of Great Britain and the more recent home games in Pakistan,” Bailey said today.

“It offers a variety of tour management options depending on the opposition and conditions that may arise in Pakistan.”

Since their reintroduction to the global touring schedule in 2019, seam bowling (199 wickets, economy rate 5.77) has generally proven more effective compared to spin (120 wickets, economy 5.52) in the 23 one-day internationals played in Pakistan, which suits Australia's favored balance of Adam Zampa as the only specialist spinner, supported by the three pacers and all-rounders.

Australia also lost 2-1 to Pakistan in their most recent ODI series in the subcontinent.

Short has played nine of Australia's 11 ODIs since Warner's retirement and made a stunning return from a broken toe for the Adelaide Strikers on Saturday with his second Big Bash century, leading his side to a record of 5-251 from their 20 overs.

Short and Fraser-McGurk, both traveling reserves at last year's T20 World Cup, had been vying for Travis Head's opening partner vacancy since Warner announced his retirement last summer, with selectors appearing to show their hand in Britain in September when Fraser- McGurk was left out for all five ODIs against England despite being in the traveling squad.

The 22-year-old returned to the side in November with Head and Marsh both on paternity leave, scoring 16, 13 and 7 in a three-match series against current Champions Trophy title holders Pakistan, which Australia lost 2-1.

Fraser-McGurk has not fared much better in the ongoing BBL|14 campaign for Melbourne Renegades with a top score of 26 from eight innings.

In addition to Short bowling off-spin and Hardie pace, the selectors have included three more all-rounder options in Marsh, Glenn Maxwell and Marcus Stoinis, while the spin of Head and Marnus Labuschagne was also used during the series in England.

Alex Carey's form in that 3-2 win over England (164 runs off 82), where he was Australia's second highest run-scorer after Head, has led to his inclusion as a back-up batting and retention option for Josh Inglis.

Hardie also played some crucial knocks from No. 8 in Great Britain, recording a career-best international figure of 3-21 in his last match for Australia in November, but he has not bowled in his five BBL|14 matches since his return to Boxing. Day from quad problem that he has been in charge of for the past year.

The two-and-a-half-week Champions Trophy format was last played in 2017 in Britain, where Pakistan defeated India in the final at The Oval.

Australia, the current men's and women's ODI World Cup champions, as well as the reigning men's under-19 title holders, will look to complete the series of 50-over world trophies on offer from the ICC.

The top two sides from each group will advance to the semi-finals, where they will compete for a spot in the decider on March 9, to be held in Lahore or Dubai.

India will play all their matches in Dubai, where the first semi-final will also take place. Following an ICC announcement in December, they and Pakistan will play their matches at neutral venues for global events hosted by their rival for at least the next three years.

All Champions Trophy matches will be broadcast on Prime Video in Australia after the global streaming giant acquired the rights to ICC events for the 2024-2027 period.

ICC Men's Champions Trophy 2025

Provisional selection of Australia: Pat Cummins (c), Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Aaron Hardie, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Matt Short, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa

Australia Group B fixtures

February 22: Australia v England, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

February 25: Australia v South Africa, Rawalpindi (8pm AEDT)

February 28: Afghanistan v Australia, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 4: Semi-Final 1, Dubai (8pm AEDT)

March 5: Semi-final 2, Lahore (8pm AEDT)

March 9: Final, Lahore or Dubai (8pm AEDT)