The southpaw’s urgent call-up comes following the suspension of captain Steven Smith from the next Test after public confessions of leading the ball-tampering scandal which saw Cameron Bancroft rub one side of the ball with a sandpaper during the third Test at Cape Town. With the ICC ruling Smith out of the Johannesburg Test besides docking his entire match fee and Bancroft escaping with a 75% fine and three demerit points, Australia have opted for a replacement despite having the likes of Peter Handscomb, who was the 12th man in the previous match, in the squad already.
Following the ICC rulings, a decision from Cricket Australia on the future of Smith, vice-captain David Warner and even coach Darren Lehmann, who, as per Smith, has no involvement with ball-tampering, is likely to be made soon.
Renshaw, who was dropped for the 2017-18 Ashes at home last summer, has shown tremendous form since the Shield resumed post the Christmas break. Ironically, Bancroft was chosen to replace Renshaw after the latter suffered a lean run of scores across Tests in India and Bangladesh before Australia’s home season commenced.
More to follow..
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