It’s Todd Murphy. They worked beautifully together in India, but their next chance to do that again, if Lyon is still going in early 2025, appears to be the two Tests in Sri Lanka unless the SCG calls for spin twins over the next couple of seasons.
Under the period covered by this current round of contracts, Australia have six Tests in England (the WTC final and five Ashes encounters) then a home summer featuring Pakistan and West Indies followed by two Tests in New Zealand. It remains likely, though, that Murphy will be part of the Ashes squad as Lyon’s understudy.
“We think he has a really bright future. Historically if you look at the team we’ve picked in England in the past, and in Australia and New Zealand, it is likely that [in] the vast majority if not all those Tests we’ll play just one spinner. We certainly like the way Todd’s progressing.”
“Last year Swep was contracted with a view that there was subcontinent tours coming up,” Bailey said. “It was likely that we were going to play two spinners in a lot of those. The emergence and improvement of Murph was tough on Swep and also the fact we do have the two white-ball World Cups coming up, so trying to squeeze four spinners on the contract list [with Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar].
“The challenge for Swep, and it’s not unique to Swep, it’s a challenge for everyone who has just missed out, is to go and dominate. Looking ahead to the next 12 months it is probably unlikely that there will be many Tests where we’ll play two spinners. So the challenge for Swep is to put the performances on the board where he can challenge to be the No. 1 spinner.”