Spencer Johnson leads Australia's pace attack against England
The left-arm quick has returned from a 12-month layoff and is seeking to rebuild his form before the one-day series.
Left-arm quick Spencer Johnson will lead Australia's new-look pace attack in three one-day internationals against England, starting Nov. 13 in Perth, Cricket Australia said in a statement.
Johnson, 30, has recovered from a back stress fracture that sidelined him for about 12 months, and he said he feels better prepared than ever for international duty.
Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are skipping the white-ball matches to prepare for New Zealand's four-Test tour, while Nathan Ellis will return from a side strain for the five T20 internationals.
Xavier Bartlett, with 34 matches, is the only seamer in the 50-over squad with more international experience than Johnson, who has 18 caps.
"I'm not going to feel like I was two years ago straight away," Johnson told reporters in Adelaide.
Johnson bowled 27 overs for South Australia in a Second XI loss to Victoria in Mildura last week, his first four-day match since a Sheffield Shield appearance in November 2024.
In one-day cricket, he took career-best figures of 5-59 against Queensland last month, and he took two wickets in two games for Australia A in India.
"That's what I'm getting picked to do," he added, referring to bowling fast and swinging the new ball.
Johnson said the compressed series, with three matches in six days, offers a useful workload towards Test cricket, which he still wants to play.
"It's definitely something I'm working towards."
Five South Australians are named across the two white-ball squads to face England, a result Johnson linked to the state's back-to-back Sheffield Shield titles and a one-day win.
The first T20 international is set for Nov. 21 at the MCG, with the series ending on Dec. 2 in Canberra.