Marcus Harris and Will Pucovski in Victorian team to play Pakistan

Pakistan’s desire for crucial match practice before the second Test in Melbourne spells good news for an Australian opening hopeful.

Test hopeful Marcus Harris will get another chance to make a claim on David Warner’s spot in the Test team when he and Will Pucovski join a hastily assembled team to play Pakistan in a two-day match in Melbourne this week.

Harris, among a crew potentially vying for Warner’s openers spot which he will vacate at the end of the series against Pakistan, narrowly missed a half-century against the tourists playing for the PMs XI.

One of his opening rivals, Matt Renshaw, made an unbeaten century in the same match in a boost to his claim but is currently nursing a hamstring injury which could curtail his Big Bash output.

Both Harris and Pucovski are without BBL contracts and the Victorians will join former Test batter Peter Handscomb in the match which Pakistan officials added to their schedule as crucial preparation ahead of the second Test showdown on Boxing Day.

“That was something extra we added into the schedule because it wasn’t there earlier,” Pakistan coach Mohammad Hafeez said after his team’s big defeat in the opening Test in Perth.

Marcus Harris batting for the Prime Ministers XI (Photo by Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

“We wanted to have more practice rather than only one practice game. That had first class status, so we couldn’t give all the bowlers the chance to have a feel.

“But that’s the reason we wanted to have that practice game so more of the guys could get a feel for a match scenario. We felt that would work well.”

The match will be played while the Australian squad have a lengthy break, and aren’t expected to reassemble in Melbourne from their home ports until Friday and Saturday.

The two-day game for Pakistan will be against a team made up of players without BBL contracts with the T20 competition set to resume on Tuesday night.

It comes after their lone practice game in Canberra ended a day early after a storm blew covers off the pitch at Manuka Oval, leaving it unplayable.

“We have requested similar conditions to the Test match so that our players can take advantage of these conditions,” Hafeez said.

“This game was not part of the tour but I wanted our players to have match-scenario style practice. We’re grateful to CA for accepting our request and providing this facility. We will try to learn from this in the most effective possible way.“