Mount Riverview product Pat Cummins was named on Sunday in Australia's 15-man squad for the Cricket World Cup, which begins next month on home soil.
It's a dream come true for the 21-year-old fast bowler, who said as early as October while playing for NSW in the Matador Cup that making his World Cup debut would be his first goal in 2015.
Cummins' selection came on the back of strong showings for Australia in two One Day Internationals against South Africa in November and impressive form for the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League, where he regularly removed batsmen during smart spells of bowling that featured both express pace and slower balls.
Cummins will form part of a potent Australian bowling attack featuring the likes of Mitchell Johnson, Xavier Doherty and his NSW Blues teammates Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc.
Michael Clarke was named as captain of an Australian squad aiming to win its fifth World Cup, the last win coming in 2007.
Clarke will miss Australia's opening match against England in Melbourne on February 14 while he continues to recover from injury, but remains confident of playing a key role for the side.
National selector Rod Marsh told Fairfax Media he was pleased with the balance of the squad.
"These players have really gelled over the past 18 months with their preparation geared towards giving us the best chance of winning a World Cup on home soil," he said.
Australia will warm up for the World Cup by playing in a tri series against England and India, starting with a match against England on Friday at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The full Australian squad for the World Cup is Michael Clarke (c), David Warner, Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, Steve Smith, George Bailey, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, Brad Haddin, James Faulkner, Mitchell Johnson, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Xavier Doherty.
