Australia may be forced into a change just three days before their opening Men's T20 World Cup match after back-up wicket-keeper Josh Inglis suffered an injury in a freak accident at New South Wales Golf Club in La Perouse.
The 27-year-old, who has represented his country in nine T20's, reportedly cut his hand after a club snapped whilst he took a shot from the fairway. Inglis was left bloodied and taken to hospital for assessment with the severity of his injuries unclear.
He and a number of his Aussie teammates were enjoying some downtime ahead of their game against New Zealand on Saturday. Under ICC rules, teams only permitted 15 players in each squad therefore his absence would be a major blow to their depth; although he was not expected to start ahead of Matthew Wade.
The injury is the latest setback for the Aussies, with Ashton Agar having only made a return in Tuesday's warm-up game against India. Question marks remain over Mitch Marsh and the extent of his injured ankle whilst Marcus Stonis has had to fast track rehabilitation for a side strain in the run up to the tournament.
England wicket-keeper-batter Jonny Bairstow was ruled out of the tournament after also suffering a freak mishap on a golf course. The 33-year-old broke his fibula in three places and suffered significant ligament damage after he slipped whilst walking from a tee-box last month.
"These next few weeks/couple of months are the key to the recovery," Bairstow said of the road ahead. He will not play before the end of the year, missing the Test Series against Pakistan in December.
"As for a time scale on return to play I’m afraid it is too early to say, the first targets in mind are getting me back on my two feet again and making sure its right. One thing is for sure and that is I shall not be partaking in anything more during 2022… however I cannot wait for what 2023 holds," he added.
It is not the first time an athlete has been ruled out of a tournament after trying their hand at another sport. Rory McIlroy suffered a similar fate back in 2015 when he damaged his ankle ligament during a friendly game of football with his friends in Northern Ireland. The resulting injury forced him out of the Open Championship that year, in what could have been a memorable title defence at St. Andrews.
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