File photo of Marnus Labuschagne.
Batsman Marnus Labuschagne will not play in Australia's limited overs bilateral series in the West Indies as a 23-player preliminary list for the tour was announced by Cricket Australia (CA) on Monday.
National selector Trevor Hohns said that the logistical complexities of bringing Labuschagne from England, where he is playing for Glamorgan in the County Championship, means that he will have to be dropped from the squad.
"Had we not been in the middle of a global pandemic Marnus would be on this tour as a well-established member and important part of the one-day side. It's an unfortunate circumstance of the many challenges the world is facing right now," said Hohns.
"As it stands, Marnus has the opportunity to continue in County Cricket and T20 games with Glamorgan as we head into the World Cup and home summer," he further said.
Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, David Warner, Moises Henriques, Alex Carey and Pat Cummins return to the squad after missing the recent white ball tour of New Zealand. Matthew Wade, Marcus Stoinis and Mitchell Marsh join D'Arcy Short in the mix for the final batting places.
Leg spinners Mitchell Swepson, Tanveer Sanga and Adam Zampa are included in the preliminary squad with a view to the T20 World Cup.
Australia preliminary list: Aaron Finch (captain), Ashton Agar, Jason Behrendorff, Alex Carey (wicketkeeper), Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe (wicketkeeper), Jhye Richardson, Kane Richardson, Tanveer Sangha, D'Arcy Short, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Mitchell Swepson, Andrew Tye, Matthew Wade (wicketkeeper), David Warner, Adam Zampa.
