Hazlewood given the all-clear of fitness concerns but Sean Abbott ruled out of Test

Josh Hazlewood cricket action

Josh Hazlewood has taken 295 international wickets maintaining an average of 24.21 during his 76-Test career

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The green light was given to Hazlewood to join the Aussie lineup for the initial Test against England after an injury scare, however, teammate the paceman will miss the match

Both suffered hamstring issues during their match for NSW in the Victoria clash in the Sheffield Shield on Wednesday

Tests indicated Hazlewood, 34 avoided tissue injury. The uncapped Abbott, 33, suffered a "moderate grade" injury

Skipper Pat Cummins is unavailable for the first Test, commencing later this month, therefore missing of a key pace option such as Hazlewood would have been a serious concern

Abbott was unlikely to play during the Western Australia Test, with Hazlewood set to join Mitchell Starc and Scott Boland as the specialist seamers

Cummins, who is recovering from back issues, appears to be scheduled to reappear during the next Test commencing December fourth

Top-order player Smith will captain the side in Cummins' absence

Like many of Australian cricketers, the bowler took part in the current round of domestic cricket in preparation for the England series

Prior to recently, he was absent from red-ball cricket representing NSW for over twelve months

He felt tightness in his hamstring towards the end of Victoria's second innings recently and left the field as a precaution

Both players participated in batting for the follow-on innings during their defeat in a substantial margin

"There's seven days until the Test matches - always err on being cautious," stated the captain

"The medical staff sought to identify the nature of the problem prior to testing it and possibly causing the condition"

"He seldom shows him cheerful, so it was good observing his positive demeanor"

"He knows his body really well. I think he was a little bit worried (and desired professional evaluation"

The bowler collected 57 caps with the national team in limited-overs formats

The yet-to-debut the pace bowler provides bowling backup within the team, providing cover for the main pace trio

Brian Munoz
Brian Munoz

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