LONDON: Australia said yesterday that captain Michael Clarke will stay in London as he recovers from a back problem, while two of his Ashes colleagues join the country’s A side ahead of their tour match against English county Gloucestershire.
Star batsman Clarke, who has suffered with back problems for much of his career, is optimistic he will be fit in time for the start of Australia’s bid to regain the Ashes from England, starting at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, central England, on July 10.
He has earmarked a return in a tour match against county side Somerset at Taunton, southwest England, on June 26.But he will remain in London until Australia’s Ashes squad officially assembles on June 24, Cricket Australia said in a statement.
Chris Rogers, Shane Watson, Mitchell Starc, James Faulkner and the suspended David Warner, banned until the first Test following his Birmingham bar-room attack on England’s Joe Root, will also stay in the British capital.
Wicketkeeper Matthew Wade and batsman Phil Hughes are the two members of Australia’s Champions Trophy squad who will now join the A side.
Title-holders Australia crashed out of the Champions Trophy at the group stage following a 20-run defeat by Sri Lanka at The Oval.
Clarke missed all three of Australia’s matches in a tournament for the world’s top eight one-day international sides but stand-in skipper George Bailey said he was likely to be available for Somerset. “I would imagine he would be fit for that game,” he added.
“There was a real chance that (Clarke) would have been fit for the Sri Lanka game but with the circumstances of the game, he did not Albeit in a different format, England struck the first blow of an Ashes season when they beat arch-rivals Australia by 48 runs in their Champions Trophy opener at Edgbaston. AFP
