Australia considering handing Test debuts to speedsters Lucy Hamilton and Maitlan Brown at the WACA Ground

Australia are considering handing baggy greens to tearaway fast bowlers Lucy Hamilton and Maitlan Brown in their day-night Test against India at the WACA Ground. Hamilton, a 19-year-old left-armer from Queensland, featured on the international stage for the first time as the hosts sealed a 3-0 sweep of the One-Day International series on Sunday and impressed with her ability to swing the ball at brisk pace. After seamer Kim Garth was ruled out of the four-day fixture, Brown — who has spent time around international squads in the past without breaking through for a debut — was called up on the back of of an impressive summer in domestic cricket for Sydney Sixers and New South Wales. Australia coach Shelley Nitschke said the side’s selection picture would become clearer once they had a better idea of what the pitch would offer but both Hamilton and Brown were both in the mix to line up alongside Darcie Brown on Friday. “We’ve certainly got some really exciting options,” Nitschke said. “Lucy was fantastic, I thought, the other day, certainly looked right at home out there. It would be amazing for her to make her debut over here at the WACA, which would suit her. “She’s bowling quite quick at the moment, Maito, and it’s great to see her bowling that front-swinging ball. She’s had a fantastic year and definitely deserves her call-up. “There’s still a little bit to play out . . . as we’ve seen in this series, anything can happen between now and the game, so we certainly haven’t settled on our starting team yet.” The Test will mark an emotional farewell for the legendary Alyssa Healy, who will come into the game in white-hot form after smashing 158 in her final One-Day International last week. Healy has a fine record opening the batting in limited-overs formats, but Nitschke hinted the veteran would likely continue in the middle-order role she has played in the Test team in recent years. “She’s certainly got a really good record there, in the middle,” Nitschke said. “She’s having a great time out there at the moment and she’s in a really good place, so we’re looking forward to seeing her out there one more time for us, this time in the baggy green. “There’s always a bit of extra buzz around when we play a Test match and this one is no exception.” Elysse Perry missed the ODI series due to a quad issue but Healy’s long-time teammate is firming to be back at her side in the Test match. Nitschke said Perry would train today at the WACA today and was “tracking pretty well” to make a comeback, but bowling in the game was “going to be a bit of a stretch”. “If she gets up, she’ll take her place in the side as a pure batter, which we know she’s more than capable of,” Nitschke said. “The next couple of days is going to give us a much clearer picture of where Ellyse fits in.” Australia own an unassailable 8-4 lead in the multi-format series, but India can level the score with a win in the Test.