Shaun Marsh out of second Test against South Africa

Cricket Australia announced that Joe Burns and Callum Ferguson will join squad for Hobart Test

PERTH: Australia will need a new opening partnership when they look to turn around their fortunes in the second Test against South Africa after Shaun Marsh was ruled out with a broken finger on Monday.

Cricket Australia announced after Australia had lost by 177 runs at the WACA that Marsh would require surgery on the digit and Joe Burns and Callum Ferguson would join the squad for the Hobart Test, which starts on Saturday.

Burns will almost certainly replace Marsh in the opening partnership with David Warner, while Ferguson has been called up as potential cover for middle order batsman Adam Voges, who has suffered a hamstring injury.

There had already been some raised eyebrows when, clearly heading for defeat, Australia announced on Sunday they would be taking the same 12-man squad to Hobart.

That left them with the single option of bringing in uncapped seamer Joe Mennie, presumably for Peter Siddle, if they wanted to change their line-up.

That changed with Marsh's injury, but it is the middle, not top order batting, that has most let Australia down and all-rounder Mitch Marsh, who took 2-100 and scored 26 runs in Perth, is perhaps fortunate not have been dropped.

Australia have now lost their last four Tests after a 3-0 sweep in Sri Lanka in July and August and another defeat at home in Hobart is sure to trigger a full-blown crisis.