Toss Australia decided to bowl first against West Indies
Morris received his first ODI cap from vice-captain Travis Head while Bartlett got his from Queensland and Brisbane Heat teammate Marnus Labuschagne. In their first ODI since the 2023 World Cup final, Australia has made several changes to their side. Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood are all resting, with Steven Smith taking over the captaincy. Cameron Green returns to bat at No. 3 while Josh Inglis has been moved up to open.
Matt Short and Aaron Hardie, who debuted just before the World Cup, will play their first ODIs at home. They will bat in the middle order as Australia looks to build depth in that area.
West Indies have also made several changes from their last ODI against England in September. Brandon King and Sherfane Rutherford have been released to play T20 franchise cricket while Shimron Hetmyer was dropped.
The MCG appears very dry, but it is a mild day in Melbourne.
Australia: 1 Travis Head, 2 Josh Inglis (wk), 3 Cameron Green, 4 Steven Smith (capt), 5 Marnus Labuschagne, 6 Matthew Short, 7 Aaron Hardie, 8 Sean Abbott, 9 Xavier Bartlett, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Lance Morris
West Indies: 1 Justin Greaves, 2 Alick Anthanaze, 3 Keacy Carty, 4 Shai Hope (capt, wk), 5 Kavem Hodge, 6 Roston Chase, 7 Romario Shepherd, 8 Matthew Forde, 9 Hayden Walsh Jr, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Oshane Thomas
