Nine days out from the Ashes, Australia is sweating on the fitness of two fast bowlers after superstar Josh Hazlewood and reserve quick Sean Abbott were sent for scans on day three of the Sheffield Shield clash between New South Wales and Victoria at the SCG.
The Blues seamers didn’t return to the field after lunch on Wednesday afternoon, with Cricket NSW initially confirming the duo were being assessed, but the nature and severity of the injuries are yet to be confirmed.
Speaking to reporters in Sydney, Australian captain Pat Cummins revealed the duo had been sent for scans on their hamstrings, adding that Hazlewood was in an optimistic mood.
“Joshy was pretty chipper when he got out, so hopefully he should be fine,” Cummins said at a Cricket Australia announcement for major sponsors NRMA.
“Sean I’m not so sure about. I think they’re still assessing him.
“We’re a week away from the Test series, always err on the side of caution, they wanted to find out what was happening before pushing it and potentially making anything worse.”
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Asked whether the double setback would unsettle Australia’s team ahead of the Ashes campaign, Cummins responded: “Hopefully not too much.
“We’ll wait and see how it comes out over the next 24 hours.
“Joshy was pretty confident when he walked out, so hopefully shouldn’t be too much of an issue.”
He added: “It’s rare to get him chipper, so it was good to see him smiling.
“He knows his body really well. I think he was a little bit worried, wanted to get it checked out. I only saw him briefly, but he was a bit happier afterwards.”
Cummins has already been ruled out of the first Test against England due to a back issue, meaning the loss of Hazlewood would come as a massive blow for the hosts, who are also missing Lance Morris, Jhye Richardson and Spencer Johnson due to injury.
The setback opens the door for South Australian seamer Brendan Doggett to potentially make his Test debut during next week’s Perth contest, which gets underway on November 21. The 31-year-old has taken 13 Sheffield Shield wickets at 14.69 since returning from a minor hamstring injury.
“He’s been bowling really well the last couple of games from what I’ve seen,” Cummins said of Doggett.
“He missed the first (Sheffield Shield) game or two, but he’s come back really strongly. He’s really well placed to be vying for a spot in that first Test. It’s always nice to have a squad full of people in form, and he’s certainly one of those guys.”
Meanwhile, Cummins confirmed he was still aiming to be available for the second Ashes Test against England, which gets underway at the Gabba on December 4.
“That’s what we’re building towards,” he said.
“Still not 100 per cent yet, so hopefully by Perth I’m up there near 100 per cent, and then we’ll see where we’re at.
“It’s still pretty aggressive, going from nothing to trying to get ready for a Test match in four weeks. But we’re going to give it a good shot.”
