Cricket Australia has today advised that Shane Watson, Shaun Marsh,
Mitchell Johnson, Ryan Harris and Pat Cummins will be unavailable for
selection for the first Test against New Zealand starting at the Gabba
on 1 December.The squad will be announced tomorrow.Cricket Australia General Manager Team Performance Pat Howard said:"We unfortunately suffered some injuries during the recent Test series
against South Africa. With such a short turnaround time between series,
five players who were involved in the series will not fully recover in
time to play the first Test against New Zealand."Speaking about the individual players, Australia team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said:Ryan Harris"Ryan Harris is recovering from the pelvis injury that kept him out of
the second Test against South Africa. He is making good progress but has
not returned to bowling as yet and is therefore unavailable to play the
first Test against New Zealand. A decision on his return to training
will be made early next week and will determine his return to playing.
Shane Watson
"Shane Watson has not fully recovered from a hamstring strain sustained
in the second Test against South Africa earlier this week. He is making
good progress and will be reviewed next week to determine his
availability."
Shaun Marsh
"Shaun Marsh has made significant progress from the back injury he
sustained in South Africa. He has not returned to training as yet and
will continue to have intensive treatment. We are hopeful that he will
return to training sometime next week and possibly be available for
selection for the second Test."Mitchell Johnson
"Mitchell Johnson injured his left foot while batting in the second
innings of the second Test against South Africa earlier this week. His
foot was considerably swollen and painful after the game but he is
showing early signs of improvement. He will not return to training in
time to be fit for the Gabba. His return to training and playing will be
clearer in coming days after he is assessed by a foot specialist in
Perth and the swelling has had a chance to resolve." Pat Cummins
"Pat Cummins experienced left heel pain towards the end of the second
innings in his debut Test match. He had scans that have cleared him of
any serious injury but we don?t expect that he will fully recover in
time. He will be reviewed early next week to determine his workload plan
for the summer.
