Scotland v Australia first T20I: Chances for fringe players to shine

Australia begin their white-ball tour of Scotland and England with the first of three T20 internationals against the Saltires at The Grange in Edinburgh on Wednesday September 4th.

Two further T20I clashes follow at the same venue on Friday and Saturday, before the Aussies head south for T20I and ODI series against England, the latter a five-match schedule.

. What: Scotland v Australia
. Where:  The Grange, Edinburgh, Scotland
. When: 23:00 (AEST), Wednesday 4th September
. How to watch: Kayo, Foxtel
. Odds: Scotland 10.00, Australia 1.062

Hazlewood sidelined by calf problem

Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the three games against Scotland after suffering a calf strain, but he is expected to be ready for the clashes with England, while Mitchell Starc will also be back in contention for these fixtures.

In their absences and that of Pat Cummins, there are opportunities for other pacemen to push their claims, with the Baggy Greens starting to plan for the 2026 T20 World Cup, which they are 5.50 to win.

Riley Meredith is the direct replacement for Hazlewood and he joins Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett and Nathan Ellis as the main seam options, with left-armer Spencer Johnson missing the whole tour due to a side strain.

Abbott, Bartlett and Meredith all missed out on selection for the T20 World Cup earlier this year and will be eager to impress, with the trio having all been playing cricket in England already this summer.

Twenty-eight-year-old Tasmanian Meredith will be desperate to impress after being recalled to the T20I set-up for the first time in more than three years, having taken eight wickets at 23.50 in five appearance against New Zealand and West Indies in 2021.

He is priced at 1.80 to have take over 1.5 wickets against Scotland on Wednesday, while he is 4.00 to be the leading bowler for Australia - the joint market leader with leg-spinner Adam Zampa.

With the bat there will be plenty of focus on Jake Fraser-McGurk, who amazingly has yet to play in a T20I for his country, but who is all but certain to open the innings with Travis Head on Wednesday.

Fraser-McGurk has hit 65 sixes in 52 T20 appearances in all competitions, including an amazing 28 in nine innings for Delhi Capitals at the IPL

He is 3.60 to be top Australia batter on Wednesday, while he is 4.33 to hit the most sixes in the match.

Hosts look to Cassell for inspiration

Scotland have stuck with all 15 players who played for them at the T20 World Cup earlier this year, with quickie Charlie Cassell and medium pacer Jasper Davidson the two additions to that party.

Cassell enjoyed an astonishing ODI debut against Oman in July when he took 7-21, record figures for a player on their one-day international bow and was on a hat-trick after striking with both of his first two deliveries on the international stage.

He has since played for Somerset in the One-Day Cup but went wicketless across four outings for the Cidermen.

Cassell is priced at 5.50 to be top bowler for the home side on Wednesday, with the more experienced Brad Wheal the market leader at 4.00.

These two sides have met in just one completed T20I and that came at the T20 World Cup in July.

The Saltires reached 180-5 from their 20 overs, with Brandon McMullen hammering 60 from 34 balls, skipper Richie Berrington making 42 not out and George Munsey 38.

The Baggy Greens chased their target down with just two balls to spare, with all-rounder Marcus Stoinis belting a crucial 59 from 29 deliveries faced.

McMullen is 5.50 to be top batter again for Scotland on Wednesday, with Berrington 5.00 and Munsey 4.75.