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Find your frequency hereAshes bolter makes Sundaresan’s early first Test XI
Lachlan Geleit • August 13th, 2025 2:23 pm
SEN Cricket’s Bharat Sundaresan has Tasmania’s Jake Weatherald as his leading contender to open the batting with Usman Khawaja in the first Ashes Test in Perth.
The uncapped 30-year-old told SEN earlier this month that he was ‘actively hunting’ a baggy green, and after leading the Sheffield Shield run-scorers list last season, Sundaresan thinks he could be the perfect foil to the measured Khawaja at the other end.
While Weatherald will no doubt have to make runs early in the 2025/26 season with the likes of Sam Konstas, Marcus Harris and Cameron Bancroft among the other contenders, he’s done his early hopes no harm so far after making 54 and 183 for Australia A in their recent clashes against Sri Lanka A in Darwin last month.
Sundaresan also has Marnus Labuschagne returning to number three, forcing all-rounder Beau Webster out of his early XI despite the strong start to his Test career.
“There are so many storylines, including who will open the batting for Australia,” Sundaresan said on SEN Whateley.
“I am keeping (a whiteboard with an XI on it), Jake Weatherald is right now up there, and you know what a beautiful story it would be, a story of redemption.
“He's a very interesting character, Jake Weatherald. I got to know him very well when he used to play for South Australia.
“Every time you saw him on a good day, he looked like he should be playing Test cricket, but the problem was those good days were intermittent, so you never thought of him as a serious Test prospect.
“But something's happened to him since he's gone to Tasmania, and at 30, the way he bats and the freedom with which he bats, I'm not saying he's David Warner or he's Ben Duckett, but he could be the perfect foil for Usman Khawaja.
“So, right now he's right there on top, Jake Weatherald, but maybe I’m slightly biased.
“Obviously, I'm going to pick Marnus in my team. Marnus comes back at 3 and Cam Green pushes back to 6, but we'll wait.”
As well as the opener position, the other role that has been much debated is whether to pick Josh Hazlewood or Scott Boland.
For Sundaresan, he has Hazlewood in for the Perth Test, but has no doubt that Boland will appear throughout the series and will definitely play at home on Boxing Day.
“In Perth, I think it's going to be Hazlewood, but as we get to Melbourne for all obvious reasons, Boland will play,” Sundaresan said.
“Boland will play regardless, but I think they'll start with Hazelwood in Perth.
“He's got a great record there, and he bowl so well last year despite Australia losing there.”
Sundaresan’s early first Ashes Test XI
Jake WeatheraldUsman KhawajaMarnus LabuschagneSteve SmithTravis HeadCameron GreenAlex Carey (c)Mitchell StarcPat CumminsNathan LyonJosh Hazlewood
