Glenn Maxwell returns as Australia's limited-overs tour of England confirmed

Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who took a break from the game last year to address mental health issues, has made a return to the national squad after the side's limited-overs tour of England in September was confirmed on Friday.

Cricket Australia and its England counterpart issued an official statement, confirming that the two sides will play a three-match T20I series and as many One-Day Internationals (ODI) in a bio-secure environment from September 4.

"Cricket Australia (CA) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have agreed to detailed biosecurity and travel plans for what will be the first international tour undertaken by an Australian national sporting team since the COVID-19 pandemic began," Cricket Australia said in an official statement.

Meanwhile, the ECB confirmed that Hampshire’s The Ageas Bowl and Lancashire’s Emirates Old Trafford will host the national side's white-ball international matches behind closed doors against Australia.

Besides Maxwell, all-rounder Marcus Stoinis and bowler Nathan Lyon have also made their way back into the 21-member Australian squad for the upcoming limited-overs fixture.

Meanwhile, the uncapped trio of Riley Meredith, Daniel Sams and Josh Philippe have got nods for the England series.

While Usman Khawaja and D'Arcy Short have been left out of the squad, Jhye Richardson continued to remain sideline with a shoulder surgery.

The 21-member squad will depart from Perth to Derby on August 23.Australia will play a 50-over intra-squad practice game and three T20 practice matches before heading into the three T20Is against England.

Reflecting on the series, Australian head coach Justin Langer, Justin Langer said,“It’s vital for cricket that we do everything we can to keep the game going in these tough times.I am delighted with how the players have returned to their states from the break back in March. The whole squad has come back fitter and stronger, which is great testament to each of them.

“We have a massive assignment ahead with World Cups, Test Series against India and South Africa and the Ashes next year. We can’t wait to get back into it again," he added.

Notably, the three One-Day Internationals will be a  part of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League, which sees 13 teams vie for direct qualifying places in the next ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup in India in 2023. 

India and seven other teams will make it directly from the league with the remaining two getting a second chance through a Qualifier. 

The full Australian squad for England tour is as follows:

Aaron Finch (captain), Sean Abbott, Ashton Agar, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Riley Meredith, Josh Philippe, Daniel Sams, Kane Richardson, Steven Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa.