England have been handed a boost ahead of the Ashes opener as Mark Wood has been cleared of a hamstring injury. However, Rehan Ahmed has been ruled out of the England Lions tour.
Mark Wood cleared after injury scare ahead of first Ashes Test
England will be relieved to see Mark Wood cleared after an injury scare during the Ashes intra-squad match at Lilac Hill in Perth. The fast bowler experienced discomfort in his left hamstring after bowling eight overs in the first innings of the warm-up game, and was taken off for scans on Friday, November 14.
Though he did not return to the field after the check-up, scans revealed that he hadn’t picked up an injury. “Following precautionary scans on Friday, England fast bowler Mark Wood has been cleared of any concerns regarding his left hamstring,” the ECB confirmed in a statement.
The fast bowler hasn’t featured for England since picking up a knee injury during the Champions Trophy in February this year. Wood then underwent surgery on his left knee in the following month. Notably, the intra-squad match was his first outing across formats since the eight-run defeat to Afghanistan in the ICC tournament.
This development comes on the same day that Australia were handed an injury blow. Already without Pat Cummins, they will also miss Josh Hazlewood, who has been ruled out due to a hamstring injury, in the Perth Test.
England Lions all-rounder Rehan Ahmed ruled out of Australia tour
Meanwhile, spin-bowling all-rounder Rehan Ahmed has been ruled out of the England Lions’ shadow tour due to a muscle strain in his right leg. The youngster featured for the Lions in the Ashes intra-squad match and scored 16 runs in the first innings. However, he did not bowl or bat after that and will now return to the UK for recovery.
The England Lions are scheduled to play two more games on their tour. They will face Cricket Australia XI in a four-day game from November 21 to 24 in Perth, before playing Australia A in a one-off unofficial Test, starting December 5, in Brisbane.
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