AUSTRALIA is set to take an unchanged XI into its third and final Test against Pakistan tomorrow, in a match which serves as David Warner‘s farewell from the format. The combative opener will bow out in front of a home crowd at the SCG with hopes of helping the hosts to a series whitewash.

NEED TO KNOW

When: January 3-7, 10:30am (AEDT)
Where: SCG, Sydney
Watch: Channel 7, Foxtel, Kayo
Listen: ABC Grandstand, SEN, Triple M

SERIES STATUS

Australia leads Pakistan 2-0

Australia jumped to an unassailable series lead in Melbourne with a hard-fought 79-run win, and will look to make it 3-0 in Sydney. Should the result go that way, it would make for a sixth consecutive clean sweep against Pakistan at home. Though essentially a dead rubber, every match counts towards the World Test Championship.

SQUADS

AUSTRALIA
Unchanged XI

David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

PAKISTAN

Saim Ayub, Abdullah Shafique, Shan Masood (c), Babar Azam, Saud Shakeel, Mohammad Rizwan (wk), Salman Ali Agha, Sajid Khan, Hassan Ali, Mir Hamza, Aamir Jamal

THE LATEST

Australian captain Pat Cummins announced his side would take an unchanged XI into the New Year’s fixture, with no need to freshen or tinker with a winning formula. Warner will play his final Test atop the batting order, while Melbourne Player of the Match Cummins leads a fine-functioning bowling quartet.

Pakistan has also announced its starting XI, including a Test debutant. Opener Saim Ayub comes in for the omitted Imam-ul-Haq, while star paceman Shaheen Shah Afridi has been rested. Sajid Khan bolsters the side’s spin department for what is usually a conducive SCG pitch.

PLAYER TO WATCH

DAVID WARNER (AUSTRALIA)

Having kicked off the Australian summer with an emphatic century in Perth, Warner made a combined 44 runs in his next three innings and is primed for one last act in the Test arena. The opener averages a shade under 50 on his home deck and will look to add to his four centuries from 18 digs there.

With the pressure of a series win alleviated, Warner can play with freedom and bid farewell to the red ball format in the way he knows best – aggressively. No matter the outcome, he will leave a legacy as perhaps Australia’s finest three-format batter and deserves a send off fitting of his achievements.

PREDICTION

Pakistan’s fight is left in Melbourne and Australia dominates from start to finish, amid an inevitable rain delay, to take out the series 3-0.

SERIES SCHEDULE

1st Test | Perth Stadium: Australia won by 360 runs.
2nd Test | MCG: Australia won by 79 runs.
3rd Test | SCG: January 3-7

WHAT’S NEXT?

A 10-day break awaits the Aussies after the Sydney Test, with a two-match series against West Indies getting underway on January 17. Adelaide and Brisbane will set the scene for a pair of Tests against the former powerhouse, before Australia jets off to New Zealand for two more matches against the Kiwis.

AUSTRALIA vs. WEST INDIES

1st Test: Jan 17-21 @ Adelaide Oval
2nd Test: Jan 25-29 @ The Gabba

NEW ZEALAND vs. AUSTRALIA

1st Test: Feb 29-Mar 4 @ Basin Reserve (Wellington)
2nd Test: Mar 8-12 @ Hagley Oval (Christchurch)