Sandhu, Carters in Cricket Australia XI

Fast bowler Gurinder Sandhu and wicketkeeper-batsman Ryan Carters will be part of the Cricket Australia XI to take on New Zealand in a tour match in Sydney starting this Thursday. Ashton Turner will captain the side in the three-day match and due to its clashing with the opening Sheffield Shield round, the CA XI will be shorn of much of the talent that took on the New Zealanders at the weekend.

Whereas in Canberra the CA XI looked like a strong Australia A side, boasting Test hopefuls such as Usman Khawaja, Cameron Bancroft and Joe Burns, at Blacktown this week it will more resemble the CA XI that took part in the Matador Cup. Carters, Sandhu and Turner form the experienced core of the side, with the talented young New South Wales batsman Kurtis Patterson also included.

There will also be several men who played for the CA XI in the one-day competition, including Hilton Cartwright, Matthew Short and Mitch Swepson. The match will be New Zealand's final warm-up game ahead of the first Test at the Gabba, and CA's national talent manager Greg Chappell said the three-day fixture would be a good opportunity for some of Australia's young talent.

"New Zealand has been one of the most successful international teams in recent years so it will be a great experience for this CA XI, which includes some of the most exciting young cricketers in the country," Chappell said. "This will be a great leadership opportunity for Ashton Turner. He has performed admirably when captaining at this level in recent years and this will allow him to build on that experience.

"West Australian all-rounder Hilton Cartwright was particularly impressive with the bat during the recent Matador BBQs One-Day Cup. He was unlucky to miss out on his maiden List A century against Queensland, but he definitely held his own against formidable opposition.

"We have been very pleased with Gurinder Sandhu's progress over the last 12 months. His consistent performances earned him his international debut and he performed well under pressure on the big stage. He was also impressive for Australia A in tough conditions in India earlier this year and also showed his diversity of skills with the introduction of his spin bowling."

Cricket Australia XI Ashton Turner (capt), Riley Ayre, Jake Carder, Ryan Carters (wk), Hilton Cartwright, Sam Heazlett, Kurtis Patterson, Jake Reed, Liam Hatcher, Gurinder Sandhu, Matthew Short, Mitch Swepson.