Matt Renshaw and Sam Konstas will come into calculations if Australian selectors decide the ‘dead-rubber’ fifth Ashes Test is a good chance to look to the future. And even if the likes of Marnus Labuschagne and Jake Weatherald are spared the axe in Sydney, it might be a different story come the next time Australia plays a Test in August against Bangladesh.
England won the fourth Test at the MCG by four wickets – their first win on Australian soil in 15 years. Now that Australia can’t get a 5-0 clean-sweep, the SCG Test presents itself as the perfect opportunity to plan for the future.
Matt Renshaw and Sam Konstas could find themselves back in the Aussie team for the fifth Ashes Test. Image: Getty
Cameron Green is the player most under fire, and is averaging just 18 with the bat this series. In 36 career Tests he’s averaging 32.25 – not exactly what you’d want from a middle-order batter.
But the 26-year-old has shown with his two Test centuries that he has what it takes, and Ricky Ponting believes dropping him back to Sheffield Shield level wouldn’t achieve anything. With his most likely replacement Beau Webster being 32, it wouldn’t exactly be a move for the future if Webster comes in for the SCG Test.
Marnus Labuschagne and Jake Weatherald under pressure
On the other hand, Labuschagne and Weatherald are both 31 and appear more likely to be axed if the Aussies want to blood some younger players in Sydney. Usman Khawaja appears unlikely to be dropped as Sydney looms as a farewell Test in the city where he spent a large chunk of his life.
Labuschagne made just 271 runs in 2025 at an average 20.84 from eight Tests. It’s the third-worst average across a calendar year ever for an Aussie top-order batter with a minimum of 20 innings.
The No.3 batter hasn’t scored a Test century in over two years, and was dropped for the tour of the West Indies in July. He forced his way back into the Test side with a weight of runs in Shield cricket, but has only managed 174 runs at 24.85 in the Ashes.
As for Weatherald, he has 146 runs at just 20.85 at the top of the order. The left-hander made 72 in Brisbane, but has fallen lbw three times in the series.
Marnus Labuschagne, Jake Weatherald and Cameron Green are all under immense pressure. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Matt Renshaw and Sam Konstas could come in
If selectors want a glimpse into the future in Sydney, the likes of Renshaw, Konstas, Nathan McSweeney, Campbell Kellaway and Cooper Connolly will all come into the frame. Renshaw has demanded selection with 425 runs at an average of 70.83 in just six innings this Shield season.
The Queenslander has the fourth-most runs in the comp, despite the majority of batters playing two extra games. Considering he averages over 70 this year, it’s almost at the point where he must play in Sydney to reward his stellar form.
Renshaw has averaged 29.31 in 14 career Tests, but the 29-year-old appears a very different player to when he debuted nine years ago. He has over 8000 runs at first-class level and gotten his average up to 38.09.
As for Konstas, he has the eighth-most runs in the Shield this year (392), but is only averaging 32.66. He averaged just 16.30 in five Tests before being dropped.
The 20-year-old has a first-class average of 32.84 in 28 games, and many believe he deserves another chance after being thrown to the wolves against India last summer. It’s the same for McSweeney, but the South Australian is only averaging 31.55 this season.
When will Australia play again after fifth Ashes Test?
After the fifth and final Test, the Aussies won’t play red-ball cricket again until a two-game series against Bangladesh at home in August. The series against the cricket minnows presents as another chance to plan for the future, before an away tour to South Africa in October and home series against New Zealand next summer.