In a major blow to the Australian cricket camp, fast bowler Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the second Test of the five-match Border Gavaskar Trophy against India, slated at the Adelaide Oval. He suffered a low-grade left-side injury and will miss his first Test since the Ashes 2023.
Fast bowlers Brendan Doggett and Sean Abbott have been added to the squad in addition to Beau Webster, who was announced as Mitchell Marsh’s replacement earlier. This is Doggett’s first call-up to the Australian Test squad since being called up for the UAE tour against Pakistan in 2018. Bowling figures of 6-15 against India A at Mackay are one of the primary reasons behind Doggett’s fastrack to the national team. Meanwhile, Abbott had been lurking around the Test squad after being a more than part-timer in the white ball squads of late. His ability to bowl and bat lower down the order adds to Australia’s advantage.
Hazlewood was Australia’s leading wicket-taker at the Perth Stadium with five wickets across two innings. Scott Boland likely will get an opportunity to showcase his ability in his absence. The Victorian has bucketed 28 wickets at an impressive average of 12.21 at home conditions. The last time he was a part of the Aussie setup was for a similar reason when Hazlewood missed out on a few games of the Ashes 2023.
This leaves Josh Inglis as the only spare batter in the squad. It won’t be surprising to see Webster leapfrog the wicketkeeper-batter and get an opportunity in the middle order, adding bowling strength to the home side.
India was scheduled to face Australia Prime Minister’s XI in a two-day match from November 30. However, persistent rain at the Manuka Oval has caused a delay in the toss.
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