England Suffer Two Big Injury Scares Ahead Of Ashes Warm-Ups

England Suffer Two Big Injury Scares Ahead Of Ashes Warm-Ups
13:04, 02 Nov 2017

England have major injury concerns just three weeks before the first Ashes Test.

As they prepare for their first warm-up game against a Western Australia XI at the Waca on Saturday, Moeen Ali and Steven Finn are both set to undergo precautionary scans tomorrow afternoon.

Ali has suffered a suspected side strain, an injury he may have aggravated by continuing to train over the past few days despite being in pain.

This isn’t the first time Moeen has had side problems, so it will need to be monitored all the more closely.

Finn, meanwhile, has a sore knee. The Times suggest he hit his leg with the bat while practising in the nets.  

The 28-year-old only joined the squad as a late replacement for Ben Stokes following the all-rounder’s arrest in Bristol in September.

The fast bowler has found himself on the fringes of the England set-up and will have been hoping to state his claim for a place in the first Test, which begins on November 23.

Finn will need no reminding of the significance of the series Down Under for him personally. It was 2013-14 Ashes in Australia that he was sent home early having suffered a crisis of confidence which had affected his form badly.

That was undoubtedly the lowest ebb of his international career and it has been a long journey to get himself back in contention under Trevor Bayliss.

Depending on the severity of Ali’s side strain, he is likely to be in more danger of missing out than Finn, who has only sustained bruising.

Even if both players return in time, it represents another setback to England’s preparations, and they have certainly had enough of those.

Stokes had already left them in the lurch. It will do him no favours that it is the two players England are relying on to fill the void left by the fiery Durham man that are now doubts for the series opener.

Jake Ball and Craig Overton are the other options Bayliss will be looking at, as they were already vying with Finn for his spot. It seems England are planning to utilise an extra bowler rather than draft in another all-rounder, but it could leave them worryingly short in the middle order and their batting line-up may need to be reshuffled.

Australia will be boosted by news of such a headache for the ECB’s selectors. The Aussies have already started talking up their chances as they look to inflict another painful whitewash on an England outfit who cannot be brimming with confidence.

x
Suggested Searches:
The Sportsman
Manchester United
Liverpool
Manchester City
Premier League
Sportsman HQ
72-76 Cross St
Manchester M2 4JG
We will not ask you to provide any personal information when using The Sportsman website. You may see advertisement banners on the site, and if you choose to visit those websites, you will accept the terms and conditions and privacy policy applicable to those websites. The link below directs you to our Group Privacy Policy, and our Data Protection Officer can be contacted by email at: [email protected]

All original material is Copyright © 2019 by The Sportsman Communications Ltd.
Other material is copyright their respective owners.