MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia won't attempt to replace injured Nathan Lyon with another spin bowler for the fourth Ashes test against England and will go into Friday's start of the match with a 12-man, pace-heavy squad.
After Lyon suffered a long-term hamstring injury in the Ashes-clinching win in Adelaide and later underwent surgery, offspinner Todd Murphy was called into the squad. But with the MCG pitch showing plenty of grass, Australia opted to leave Murphy out when it named its squad Thursday.
Captain Steve Smith will wait until the toss at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday before confirming a starting XI.
England lost each of the first three tests to allow Australia to retain the Ashes in just 11 days of on-field action.
It's unusual for an Australian team not to select a spinner at the MCG, a place where Shane Warne and Lyon have had success.
“A lot of the wickets we’re playing on at present are certainly more seam-friendly than spin-friendly,” Smith said on Thursday. “Last week (in Adelaide) was an anomaly; we saw some rough and we saw Nathan come in to play big-time.
“It’s a tricky one. You’ve just got to play what surface you’re presented with, and this one out here looks like it’s going to offer a fair bit of assistance for the seam bowlers."
Joining Lyon and captain Pat Cummins on the sidelines are Josh Inglis, with fast bowlers Jhye Richardson, Brendan Doggett and Michael Neser included.
Left-handed veteran Usman Khawaja was preferred to Inglis after making 82 and 40 in the third test in Adelaide. Richardson is in contention to play his first test in more than four years after a bad run of injuries.
Doggett and Neser played in the second test in Brisbane, but were left out in Adelaide when Cummins and Lyon returned.
England named its team on Wednesday with the big news the loss of star bowler Jofra Archer for the rest of the series, including the fifth and final test starting Jan. 4 in Sydney.
Australia squad: Travis Head, Jake Weatherald, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith (captain), Usman Khawaja, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Michael Neser, Mitchell Starc, Jhye Richardson, Brendan Doggett, Scott Boland.
England team: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jamie Smith, Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
England's Ben Stokes, right, walks with teammate Jofra Archer after dismissing Australia during play on day four of the third Ashes cricket test between England and Australia in Adelaide, Australia, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/James Elsby)
Australia's Usman Khawaja sign autograph to fans after they won the third Ashes cricket test match against England in Adelaide, Australia, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025 (AP Photo/James Elsby)
KABUL, Afghanisan (AP) — Widespread flooding, landslides and lightning strikes triggered by heavy rain and storms across Afghanistan have left 77 people dead and 137 injured over the past 10 days, the country’s Disaster Management Authority said Saturday.
More rain has been forecast for the coming days throughout Afghanistan, and the authority warned the public to stay away from river banks and areas prone to flooding.
So far this year, dozens of people have died due to extreme weather in Afghanistan, an impoverished country that is highly vulnerable to extreme weather events. Earlier this year, heavy snowfall and flash floods left dozens of people dead across the country.
The recent toll includes 26 people killed over the past 48 hours, the disaster authority said. Overall, 793 homes have been completely destroyed and a further 2,673 have been damaged, while floods and landslides have destroyed 337 kilometers (about 210 miles) of roads, it said.
Businesses, agricultural land, water wells and irrigation canals have also been damaged, with more than 5,800 families affected overall, the authority said.
Several highways connecting the country’s capital to the provinces have also been damaged by floods and landslides, forcing travelers to take long, circuitous routes to reach Kabul, Public Works Ministry spokesman Ashraf Haqshinas said Saturday.
They include the Kabul to Jalalabad highway, which is the main route linking the capital to the Pakistani border and eastern Afghan provinces. A landslide and rockfalls, as well as flooding, shut the highway on Thursday morning, and Haqshinas said crews were working to re-open the road.
The Public Works Ministry warned travelers to be cautious when using roads in affected areas.
Flooding has also shut the Salang Pass, a high mountain pass in the Hindu Kush mountain range that connects Kabul to the country’s north, including the major cities of Kunduz and Mazar-e-Sharif.
Snow and heavy rain often trigger flash floods that kill scores, or even hundreds, of people at a time in Afghanistan. In 2024, more than 300 people died in springtime flash floods.
Elena Becatoros contributed from Kabul, Afghanistan.
Residents carry furniture in a wheelbarrow as they clear an area damaged by heavy flooding in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Wahidullah Kakar)
Residents inspect a building that partially collapsed due to heavy flooding in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Wahidullah Kakar)
Residents inspect a building that partially collapsed due to heavy flooding in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Wahidullah Kakar)
Residents inspect a building damaged by heavy flooding in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Saturday, April 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Wahidullah Kakar)
Locals inspect a damaged house following floods, landslides and thunderstorms in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Sibghatullah)
Locals inspect a damaged house following floods, landslides and thunderstorms in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Sunday, March 29, 2026. (AP Photo/Sibghatullah)
