Marsh confirms World Cup top six as ball-tampering questions dominate Perth presser

On the eve of the ODI series opener against England at Optus Stadium, Marsh, the stand-in captain, offered a few nuggets. Of particular note, he revealed that Australia's top six is essentially set in stone and will likely be the batting order at next year's World Cup given they do not play another ODI series until mid-2027.

Steven Smith no longer plays ODI cricket, while Marnus Labuschagne, who was part of the 2023 World Cup triumph and last played ODIs in July against Bangladesh, is mired in a major form slump that has seen him axed from Test cricket.

"We obviously have a few guys missing from our bowling attack, with the Test guys resting throughout this period," Marsh said of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc. "We've got a batting line-up that I see being at that World Cup, and it's sort of where we end up."

Marsh, who regularly captains the ODI team with Cummins only occasionally playing the format these days, usually only announces his side's XI at the toss. But he was in a charitable mood on this occasion, declaring that Western Australia young quick Mahli Beardman will make his home debut in international cricket, having played one T20I in Pakistan earlier in the year.

"He's always on record saying that all he wants to do is bowl fast, and that's an attitude that you can't always teach. The times that I have played with him in big moments, he's always got a smile on his face, and I'm looking forward to seeing him out there tomorrow."

Marsh, who has retired from first-class cricket, also confirmed that he was approached by Cummins ahead of the recent Test series in South Africa, but turned down a possible Test comeback due to the impending birth of his second child.

However, all of that, in this turbulent week for Australian cricket, will be essentially buried amid the feverish reopening of the sandpaper scars in the aftermath of Usman Khawaja's autobiography Sabr.

There was much anticipation over Marsh fronting the cameras, given he played all four Tests of the 2018 South Africa series. He also had success with reverse swing during a session in the second Test where Khawaja claimed the ball had been tampered with.

Reportedly fairly anxious about his media appearance, Marsh was not given a few softballs to begin with. A local television newshound - who does not report on sport - went straight for Marsh's throat by asking if he knew sandpaper was being used to tamper with cricket balls in South Africa. "You've six off the first ball there, mate. Well done," grinned Marsh in his trademark jovial style.

But his mood soon soured at the reporter, who essentially hogged the questions during the first six minutes entirely dedicated to the sandpaper saga.

Marsh eventually left the cauldron, quickly changing into his yellow playing kit for a trophy photoshoot with England captain Harry Brook. The pair posed on the field, sitting on chairs and pretending to sip tea amid a British traditional high tea theme, with the photos already predictably being mocked on socials.

Brook then fronted the media, looking relatively relaxed compared to Marsh, with England in the unusual position of going under the radar in Australia. He did also inevitably have to respond to the ball-tampering issues, but the questions lacked the earlier sizzle.

"I've never seen any ball-tampering before," Brook said. "I think I was about 17 or 18 years old [at the time of the 2018 scandal], so I was completely oblivious to that stuff."

The build-up to the series between the traditional rivals has basically been non-existent, and the opening international of the Australian summer is unlikely to take the headlines away from a furore that shows no signs of abating

Cummins is due to face the music when he fronts the media in Sydney on Friday morning, around five hours before the first ball is bowled at Optus Stadium.