Australia might rest Josh Hazlewood and bring back Scott Boland for the third Ashes 2023 Test against England at Headingley, skipper Pat Cummins hinted on Wednesday, July 5.
Due to a variety of injuries, Hazlewood has missed more than half of Australia’s Test matches in the past couple of years. Prior to returning for the two Tests here, he missed the World Test Championship final owing to side difficulties and an Achilles injury. He has so far bowled 56 overs for a 56.50 average while taking eight wickets.
He had previously also missed the Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series and missed the majority of matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2023.
“He would be the obvious one you’d be a bit more careful of. The tour so far for him has gone as well as he could have hoped – no injuries, but he is kind of in uncharted territory for the last year or two. I think there will be some conversation around that.
I think he bowled (about) 25 and 35 (overs in the two Ashes Tests) which isn’t extreme numbers, but again you weigh up this game versus the last two, how he’s tracking so we’ll work through that … you don’t want to put anyone in higher risk than you’d like knowing that there’s a couple of fresh guys on the bench that can come straight in,” Cummins was quoted by ESPNCricinfo.
Boland, who was expensive and only picked up two wickets in the first Test before being replaced by Mitchell Starc in the second, would be the more “obvious” replacement, according to Pat Cummins.
“We are super confident with either Scotty or ‘Nes’ (Neser) that’d they do a super job … we’d have to have a look at the wicket but think Scotty would be the obvious one,” Cummins continued.
Boland has an exceptional Test record in his two-year-old Test career, having picked 35 scalps from nine matches at 17.94.
“I Genuinely Didn’t Know” – Pat Cummins On Whether Australia Will Celebrate If They Retain The Ashes At Headingley
After winning the WTC, victory at Headingley would solidify the legacy of this Australian Test team by marking the first away Ashes series victory since 2001.
Although he acknowledged there were conflicting emotions, Cummins was a key player in the 2019 series that ended in a drawn 2-2 tie and led to the urn’s retention.
“I think everyone felt a bit differently about it. In Manchester, when we won that Test match to retain it, there was a big celebration where some people, me included, kind of thought, ‘do you celebrate when you retain it’. I genuinely didn’t know. For me it’s always about winning a series outright so that’s the goal. We want to win one of these last three Test matches,” the Australia captain said.
The third Test at Headingley begins on July 6.