NEW DELHI: Australia suffered yet another setback in its chances of making a comeback in the Border-Gavaskar trophy after its opening mainstay David Warner on Tuesday was ruled out for the remainder of the Test series.
After being hit by Mohammed Siraj during the first innings of the second Test in Delhi, Warner suffered a hairline fracture in his left elbow. He was hit on the helmet two overs later, experiencing delayed concussion symptoms, and was substituted out of the Test match.
The opener is set to fly back to Australia to recover. However, he is expected to return for the ODI series that will follow the Test series shortly.
“David Warner has been ruled out of the Qantas test tour of India and will return home. 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.
India have secured an unassailable lead of 2-0 in the Test series after victories in the Nagpur and Delhi Tests. Australia is already without the services of Josh Hazlewood due to a persistent Achilles injury while Mitchell Starc is expected to play in Indore after having recovered from his finger injury.
All-rounder Cameron Green who is training at the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi is also expected to make the playing eleven in the third Test in Indore. Mitchell Swepson is also poised to return to the team after taking a leave of absence to give birth to his first kid. Captain Pat Cummins left home immediately after the Delhi Test for family reasons but is expected to return later this week and play in Indore, but his status remains unclear.
Australia may release some team players to play domestic cricket at home, with any alterations to be finalised on Wednesday. On Monday, Andrew McDonald, Australia men’s team coach mentioned that a call on Warner’s fitness will be taken this week, while no further changes to the visiting group have been disclosed.
“We’re in no rush to make any decisions at this point in time around Davey. It will be basically how sore and how functional it is as to what decision we make with him and then the length of the injury. There’s some talk the length of injury could be anywhere between a week-plus, depending on how that settles down. There’s a bit of unknown there, so I’ll leave that to the medical team and they’ll inform me once they know,” McDonald said in Delhi yesterday as quoted by cricket.com.au.
India will play Australia in Indore for the third Test that starts on March 1 while the fourth Test will be played in Ahmedabad from March 9. (ANI)
Also Read: Pat Cummins returns home due to family health issues following loss in 2nd Test against India
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