Melbourne, Sept. 7 -- Australia have announced a pace-heavy squad for next month's three-match ICC World Test Championship series in South Africa, with batter Marnus Labuschagne's retention being one of the highlights.

It will mark their first meeting since last year's World Test Championship Final at Lord's and will be pivotal in deciding which sides reach next year's decider at The Oval, as per the ICC.

The Aussies have included all their experienced fast bowlers in the 16-player squad, while out-of-form batter Labuschagne is retained despite a lean recent run that has not seen the right-hander score a century since July 2023. Since 2023, the batter has averaged below 30 in the 22 matches played.

Labuschagne is included in a batting ...