Josh Hazlewood to miss Scotland T20Is due to calf strain
Veteran Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the upcoming T20I series against Scotland, due to a calf strain sustained during training. The 33-year-old's injury is considered minor, and he is expected to recover in time for the T20Is and ODIs against England later in September. However, team selectors may adopt a cautious approach considering a busy home summer that includes five Tests against India.
Meredith replaces Hazlewood for Scotland T20Is
Riley Meredith, who last represented Australia in T20Is in 2021, has been named as Hazlewood's replacement. Meredith has been performing well for Somerset in white-ball cricket during the English season. He claimed 14 wickets at an average of 22.78 in the T20 Blast and six wickets in three one-day cup games, including a four-wicket haul against Middlesex at Lord's.
Australia's pace attack for Scotland series
Hazlewood is the second fast bowler to be ruled out of the squad, following Spencer Johnson's side strain injury. The pace attack for the Scotland series will now include Meredith, Xavier Bartlett, Sean Abbott, and Nathan Ellis. All-rounders Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie and Marcus Stoinis are also part of the team along with potential captain Mitchell Marsh. Spinners Adam Zampa and debutant Cooper Connolly complete Australia's bowling line-up.
Starc, Cummins to miss Scotland series
Hazlewood was initially the only one of Australia's big three quicks included for the full tour of the UK. Mitchell Starc will only feature in the ODIs against England while Pat Cummins is skipping the entire trip to focus on strength and conditioning ahead of the home summer. "The priority at the moment is to smash out some gym work and start reassessing in a few weeks a path forward," Cummins stated last week.
