Steve Smith to lead Australia in India ODIs as Pat Cummins stays home after mother's death

Australia captain Patrick Cummins will not be returning to India to lead the side in the upcoming three-match ODI series and Steve Smith will be the stand-in captain. Notably, Cummins flew back to Australia after the second Test of Border-Gavaskar series, initially for the third Test only, to attend his ailing mother.

Cummins then stayed back after his mother passed away and will continue to stay there for some more time. Steve Smith, meanwhile, led in his absence in the last two Test of the series, which India won 2-1.

Australia coach Andrew McDonald also said that Cummins is still taking care of what has happened.

"Pat won’t be coming back, he’s still taking care of what’s happened back home," he said. "Our thoughts are with Pat and his family as they go through that grieving process," added McDonald.

The Australian cricket board, however, has not named a replacement for Cummins in the squad which now has 15 players in it.

Opening batsman David Warner and spinner Ashton Agar, however, will be available for the series. David Warner had flown back to Australia due to a fractured arm after the second Test and Ashton Agar was sent back as well midway through the series.

Apart from them, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh will also be making a comeback following a long absence due to injuries. Pacers Josh Hazlewood and Jhye Richardson, however, won't be available due to injuries. Nathan Ellis has been named as as a replacement for Richardson though.

Coach McDonald, while talking about the balance of the team, said he has had a conversation around it and there'll be a mix of combinations leading into the ODI World Cup, scheduled to played in India later this year.

"We've got a couple of conversations around the balance of the team we want to play, we've gone in with a structure with eight batters to bat a little bit deeper, we've tried that. So there'll be a mix of combinations as we lead into the World Cup. (There is) a lot of allrounders picked in the squad and can they all play in the one team. So we've got to answer a few of those questions," he said.

The ODI series starts on March 17 in Mumbai with next two matches scheduled in Vishakhapatnam and Chennai on March 19 and 22, respectively.

Australia ODI squad vs India: Steve Smith (c), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Nathan Ellis, Cameron Green, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa

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