Australia have officially ruled out Josh Hazlewood from taking his place in the second Ashes Test, set to begin on Thursday in Adelaide, after the fast bowler suffered a side strain during the opening match.
The injury blow has opened the door for either Western Australian quick Jhye Richardson or Queensland paceman Michael Neser to be added to the XI, as the hosts shoot for a two-nil lead in the series.
Former Test captain Mark Taylor is torn over which of the two should receive the call-up.
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“It’s tough, isn’t it? If you’re looking like for like, Michael Neser’s probably a little more like Hazlewood, and you’d probably say that Jhye Richardson’s a bit more like a Pat Cummins,” Taylor told Wide World of Sports.
“If it were Starc or Cummins who were out, I think Richardson would be straight in, particularly as he was the 12th man for (the first) Test.
“But with Neser taking five wickets (for Australia A), and he’s a bit more of that stump-to-stump, slight-outswing bowler, he’ll come into consideration.
“But it would be tough not to give Richardson the first crack as he was the 12th man.”
Richardson, 25, has taken 90 first-class wickets at 21.11, while 31-year-old Neser has 236 first-class scalps at 24.47.
Richardson has played two Tests, taking six wickets at 20.50 against Sri Lanka during the 2018-19 Australian summer, while Neser is yet to debut.
The injury Hazlewood sustained in the Brisbane Test limited the 30-year-old to bowling just 14 of the 103 overs in England’s second innings. Fellow pacemen Cummins and Mitchell Starc completed 20 overs each, while off-spinner Nathan Lyon contributed 34 overs as he surged past 400 Test wickets.
Hazlewood returned to Sydney yesterday afternoon for further assessment and rehabilitation.
The New South Welshman’s availability for the third Test, the MCG’s Boxing Day fixture, will be confirmed in due course.
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