Squad: Aaron Finch (c), Ashton Agar, Alex Carey (wk), Pat Cummins, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott (wk), Kane Richardson, Steven Smith, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Ashton Turner, Andrew Tye, David Warner and Adam Zampa

In 19 T20 internationals, Stoinis averages just 15.11 with the bat with a highest score of 33*. He was a part of the eleven that played both the T20s against India in February 2019 - the last time Australia played T20 internationals - but a below-par World Cup in England led to his dropping from the team. In 8 matches, all he managed was 87 runs at a measly strike rate of 76.99 and took just 7 wickets at 34.86, although he was troubled by a side strain during Australia's run to the semi-final.

In selecting the squad, national selector Trevor Hohns was eyeing a team for the World T20 to be hosted by Australia next year. "It is almost a year to the day until Australia hosts the men's Twenty20 World Cup and we have selected this squad with that in mind", he said.

Surprisingly, even opener D'Arcy Short, the highest run-getter in successive editions of the Big Bash League, has also been dropped, with Hohns terming it as "unlucky" following the comebacks of Smith and Warner. "There are always unlucky people when it comes to selection, and D'Arcy operates in the area where there just happens to be Smith, Warner, and Finch, and it's difficult to squeeze one of those fellows out. D'Arcy obviously is a standby player at this stage," Hohns said.

While Stoinis' last season's BBL performances of 533 runs went unnoticed, McDermott's 376 runs were enough to earn him a recall after he last played a T20 last November at home against India. In terms of the bowling, the pace department will be handled by Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins in the company of Stanlake, Kane Richardson, and Andrew Tye, while the spin duties will be shared between Adam Zampa and left-armer Ashton Agar, with the part-time spin of Glenn Maxwell also available.

Australia begin their 2019-20 home season with three T20s each against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, the first of which will be played at Adelaide on October 27 with the last one at Perth on November 8. The action then shifts to Test cricket, with two Tests scheduled against Pakistan and three against New Zealand.