Australian opener Marcus Harris will play in the third Ashes test: Justin Langer

Australia will hold out striker Marcus Harris for the third Ashes Test and is confident Mitchell Starc will recover from a rib problem at the time of the Melbourne Cricket Ground ball, coach Justin Langer said on Thursday.

With 38 runs so far in four innings in the series, Harris is a specialist batsman in the Australian team, having won the hosts in the first two races in Brisbane and Adelaide.

“He will play in the test, don’t worry about it,” Langer told reporters.

“This is his home field, he has played a lot in MCG. At the moment he doesn’t want to run but … he knows how to play …

“For him, for us, we hope to play well and get a good partnership with Davy Warner in this Boxing Day Test match.”

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Langer, the opener who played 105 Tests for Australia, endured similar times when his position was in doubt and said it was important to help the players.

“We like to support our players wherever we can,” he added.

“It’s a tough concert, opening up to Test cricket, but we’re really confident that Marcus has got what it takes to be a successful Australian batsman.”

Fast bowlers Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood will return to the team on Thursday after losing their second race in Adelaide, which Australia won by 275 races.

Cummins has completed health protocols after close contact with a COVID-19 case and is confident he will resume captaincy, but Hazlewood will have to prove he has recovered from a side strain he suffered at the opening of the series.

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Michael Neser and Jhye Richardson replaced the pair in Adelaide, while Scott Boland joined an undisguised fan as a cover on Tuesday, and Langer said it was undecided how to complete the Melbourne bowling attack.

“Both Michael and Jhy did a great job in the final Test match,” he added.

“We have five test matches in a row, we will manage our bowlers as best we can and we will be our best and ready to play in Melbourne Park.”

Starc was also concerned that he was batting in Adelaide after being injured, but Langer believed his left arm would be ready to go quickly on Sunday.

“I would be very surprised if Boxing Day didn’t get up for the test,” Langer said.

“It should be fine, it’s tough. If it’s not good, we’ll look into it, but at this stage it’s not going to be available.”