The ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy has been a tough ride for the Australian team so far. The visitors lost the first two Tests without putting up much fight on the spin-friendly tracks. The Aussie batters’ technique got exposed against Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin in Nagpur and New Delhi as both ends got finished inside three days only.
Pat Cummins and Co are desperate to bounce back in the series with the third Test match shifted to Indore from Dharamsala. The visitors have got some time to rework their plans and tactics against the Asian Giants as the two matches will also decide the fate of the World Test Championship final.
However, the Aussie camp has been hit by several injury crises as David Warner has been ruled out of the last two Tests as he will return to home. Apart from him, pacer Josh Hazlewood, who didn’t play the first two Tests, has also been excluded from the squad due to an Achilles injury. Hazlewood will also travel back to Australia to complete his rehabilitation.
“Warner was struck on the elbow in the second Test in Delhi and sustained a hairline fracture. After further assessment, he will require a period of rehabilitation which will preclude any further involvement in the remainder of the Test series. It is currently anticipated that he will return to India for the three One-Day Internationals which follow the Test Series,” Cricket Australia said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Australia missed the services of their star players Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc in the first two matches as the due is not fully recovered from their respective finger injuries. There is still no confirmation regarding their availability for the Indore Test as the team management is assessing their situations closely.
The injury crisis doesn’t stop here as off-spinner Todd Murphy who claimed an eight-wicket haul on his debut in Nagpur, also sustained a slight niggle. However, head coach Andrew McDonald feels he is expected to regain full fitness before the third Test.
Earlier, Mitchell Swepson also went back to Australia for the birth of his child and missed the first two games, but he will return to India for the last two matches which are very crucial for Australia in the context of the WTC final.
Cummins has flown back home in the middle of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy due to a serious family health problem. The Australian captain will rejoin the team for the preparations ahead of the third Test, beginning on March 1 in Indore.
Get the latest Cricket News here
Comments
0 comment