The lanky fast bowler of the Australian Cricket team, Josh Hazlewood, is going to miss the upcoming three-match T20I series against Scotland, all of which will be played at the Grange Cricket Club in Edinburgh, starting from September 04.
Josh Hazlewood suffered a calf strain injury during training last week, which put him out of action for the team’s first half of the United Kingdom tour. The injury of the experienced pacer is described to be minor as he is expected to make a comeback in the side for the T20Is and ODI in England later in September.
However, Cricket Australia (CA) will be keeping a close eye on monitoring the issue of the pacer and how he recovers, given their upcoming busy home summer, which includes the five-match series against India in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25.
Riley Meredith to replace Josh Hazlewood for Scotland T20Is
The 33-year-old Josh Hazlewood, who has featured in 51 T20Is for the national side since making his debut more than a decade ago, has picked up 65 wickets in the shortest format of the game at an average of just over 22 and a strike rate of nearly three overs, with an economy rate of 7.48, with the best bowling figure of 4/12.
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In his place, Australia has called back their right-arm pacer, Riley Meredith, who played the last of his five T20Is at the Gros Islet against West Indies in 2021. The 28-year-old has picked up eight wickets in the shortest format, but his average of 23.50 and an economy rate of nearly ten is quite poor.
The Tasmania-born has played for the Somerset side in the white-ball cricket during the English season. He grabbed 14 scalps at an average of 22.78 in the T20 Blast and six wickets in the three One-day games, including the figure of 4/27 at Lord’s against Middlesex, as the team reached the final.
Josh Hazlewood is the second quick bowler of the squad to get ruled out of the trip after their left-arm pacer, Spencer Johnson, also went through the same route and fortune, picking up a side strain playing in the Hundred.
The pace attack of the Mitchell Marsh-led side now consists of Meredith, Xavier Bartlett, Sean Abbott, and Nathan Ellis, along with their pace-bowling all-rounders, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Marcus Stoinis, and the captain himself. In the spin department, they have the likes of the veteran leg-spinner Adam Zampa and the uncapped Cooper Connolly.
Josh Hazlewood is one of the pacers who was included in the full tour of the UK. The left-arm pacer, Mitchell Starc, will play the ODIs against England, while Pat Cummins has been awarded a break for the entire trip to focus on his strength and conditioning ahead of the summer. He is expected to play a few games along with Starc during the Sheffield Shield tournament.
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“The priority at the moment is to smash out some gym work and start reassessing in a few weeks a path forward. I’m just trying to fill up the bucket again after two years of non-stop bowling. (Hoping) come that first Test (against India) in as good of a position as I have been in for a few years.” The Australian captain said last week.
Australia’s updated T20I squad vs Scotland
Mitchell Marsh (captain), Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Cooper Connolly, Tim David, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Travis Head, Josh Inglis (wk), Riley Meredith, Marcus Stoinis, Adam Zampa.
