ENG vs AUS, 2018: Josh Hazlewood Ruled Out of England Series

Australia has been plagued severely by injuries in the recent past. To add to their woes, their most experienced bowler, Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the upcoming limited-overs series against hosts England.

It will surely be a massive blow for the visitors. They are trying to revive their lost pride after the infamous ball-tampering scandal at Cape Town in South Africa.

Meanwhile, Queensland speedster Michael Neser has been named as his replacement.

Australia has taken a conservative approach to Hazlewood, who is currently facing back soreness.

“Josh has been managing some low-level bone stress in his lumbar spine for a short period,” Cricket Australia physiotherapist David Beakley was quoted by CA’s digital platform.

 

“He had a repeat scan today. Although it has not progressed to a fracture, he is starting to experience some lower back pain,” Beakley maintained.

 

“As such, we are taking a conservative approach, and he will not travel to England for the one-day series,” he added.

The uncapped Queensland quick Nesser made a name for himself in the Sheffield Shield as a skillful swing bowler in the domestic circuit fold.

Also Read: IPL 2018: Ravichandran Ashwin Congratulates Chennai Super Kings for Third Title Victory

Neser has bagged 41 List A wickets at an average of 36.60. He was also the leading wicket-taker in the JLT One-day Cup held last summer.

Australia will be missing the services of all three pacers:

The absence of Josh Hazlewood will mean the Aussies will be devoid of all the three fast bowlers. Earlier, the trio played an intriguing role for hosts in the Ashes squad.

The series against the No. 1 ranked One-day International side in the world is expected to be an intense affair.

Meanwhile, it must be noted that Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins will also miss the series.

Former skipper and vice-captain Steven Smith and David Warner are also not the part of the Aussie squad, for their one-year suspension respectively following their role in the ball-tampering row in Cape Town a couple of months ago.

Moreover, Mitchell Marsh has also been injured and didn’t get included.

Also Read: ICC’s Anti-Corruption Unit Launches Full Investigation Following ‘Fixing’ Allegations By Al Jazeera