Josh Inglis Nears Test Return as Australia Face Selection Puzzle

Dr. Annelies De Vos · 2026-10-11

Josh Inglis is packing his bags for Gqeberha. The wicketkeeper-batter is set to rejoin Australia's Test squad as he works his way back from a fractured finger, and there's a real chance he could feature in the second Test against South Africa. He's been sidelined since late last month, when the injury happened during the ODI leg of the tour. But the latest news is encouraging, and that's exactly what Australia needed to hear. ### Inglis Injury Update and Recovery Progress Inglis broke his finger in the first ODI in Durban and flew back to Australia to get it checked out and start his recovery. The good news? He avoided surgery, which kept the door open for a return on this tour. A recent scan showed solid progress. That's what cleared the way for him to link back up with the squad. Australia hasn't confirmed whether he'll be fit for selection in the second Test. But having him around the group means the team management can keep a close eye on how he's tracking over the next few days. Sometimes just having a player back in the environment is half the battle. ### How Australia Covered for Inglis in Durban With Inglis out of the opening Test, Australia had to fill two spots. That's the thing about Inglis — he offers both wicketkeeping and batting cover, even though all five of his Tests have come as a specialist batter. Sam Harper came in from the Australia A tour of India to take the back-up gloves role. Nic Maddinson also got a surprise recall. Head coach Andrew McDonald explained how the selectors saw it. "It really turned into two players replacing Josh Inglis," he said. McDonald added that the flexibility Inglis provides led to Harper being picked as the reserve keeper, which in turn led to the call for Maddinson. That's the ripple effect of one injury. It's not just about replacing one guy — it's about reshuffling the whole deck. ### Australia's Batting Order and Cameron Green Concern The injuries forced Australia to rework their batting order for the first Test. Maddinson opened the innings in his first first-class match since March 2025. He fell for a duck off 33 balls on the opening day — the longest by an Australian opener in Tests. Not exactly the comeback he was hoping for. Matt Renshaw moved down to No. 5 and made a bigger impact. He steadied the innings after Australia slipped to 84 for 4 and later 124 for 6. That kind of grit matters when the top order wobbles. Cameron Green has added to the selection questions. He picked up an abdominal injury in the final ODI in Potchefstroom and missed the Durban Test. There's still uncertainty about whether he'll be available for the second match. McDonald said Green is unlikely to bowl as an allrounder at any stage of the series. That's a significant blow for balance. ### What Inglis' Return Means for the Series Australia now have more options as the series moves to Gqeberha. Inglis could slot back into the middle order, while Harper stays on as the second wicketkeeping option. The final combination will depend on how Inglis responds in training and on the fitness reports for Green. It's a waiting game, but at least the waiting is now filled with possibility. South Africa lead the series after the first Test in Durban. Australia need to settle their batting line-up quickly to stay in contention. The team management will announce its playing XI closer to the start of the second Test. For now, all eyes are on Inglis and how he pulls up. If he's fit, he walks straight back into the side. If not, Australia will have to dig deep again. One thing's for sure: this series just got a lot more interesting.