November 21 Thursday 2002
Injuries bother England as Aussies gear up for attack

ADELAIDE: England will give injured batsman John Crawley until the morning of the second Ashes cricket Test to prove he can play against Australia at Adelaide Oval on Thursday. 

The Hampshire middle-order batsman has been in discomfort with deep-seated bruising after he was struck on the hip by a delivery during an unbeaten 55 against Australia A in Hobart last Sunday.

Team coach Duncan Fletcher on Wednesday rated Crawley's chances of playing as very doubtful and Kent batsman Robert Key was the logical standby after his unbeaten 174 against Australia A.

Team officials said Crawley would undergo a fitness test at the ground before the England team was decided. England may make up to three changes, and all injury-enforced, from the one thrashed by 384 runs in the opening Gabba Test.

Yorkshire off-spinner Richard Dawson will get an unexpected opportunity to play after front-line spinner Ashley Giles broke his wrist when batting in the nets on Tuesday. Alex Tudor, who was not named in the original tour party, is likely to replace sidelined paceman Simon Jones, who ruptured knee ligaments during the the Brisbane Test.

It is Crawley's seniority in the side and his valuable experience which the England team are reluctant to discard prematurely and they hope a night's rest and treatment may get him to play. "Crawley's not looking too good. He got that knock on the hip and it hasn't reacted too well," Fletcher said on Wednesday.

"It's right on the top of the hip bone, it got him smack on the bone and there's a problem with bruising there and it just doesn't seem to be getting better. "The medical staff thought the bruising might have got a bit better, but he struggled again today in the nets as soon as he applies any weight on to that leg there's a bit of a problem.

"At the end of the day Crawley has done well for us, he's batted really well and he's been an experienced campaigner, he does play spinners well which is important so it's not easy to just replace experience."

Injuries have dogged the touring party since their arrival in Australia, although their gamble to bring unfit members, paceman Darren Gough and allrounder Andy Flintoff, has backfired. Gough has returned home with a chronic knee injury while Flintoff will be left out of the next two Tests in a bid to fully recover from a hernia operation prior to the Australian campaign.

Faced with a crippling run of injuries and a relentless Australian team, Fletcher said England had no choice but to stick to their guns for the remainder of the five-match Ashes series.

"You just keep at it. That's one of the strengths of this side," he said. "We've taken a few knocks and the guys just
keep coming back. There's good morale still in the side. "Giles' injury gives young Dawson an opportunity to play and hopefully he can rise to the occasion." Fletcher, who with skipper Nasser Hussain must devise a way of getting England back in the series, said Dawson would not have played if Giles was fit.

Australian skipper Steve Waugh had no sympathy for England's injury plight saying they had paid the price for bringing unfit players on tour. Waugh said England's selection policy of choosing unfit players to tour was in contrast to Australia's approach of only playing fit players.

"They picked some guys who weren't fit, so in some ways they've made their own bed," Waugh said on Wednesday. "It's unfortunate that a guy (Giles) breaks his wrist at training, that's one of those things, but if you pick guys who aren't fit at the start of the tour then you are taking a gamble."

The Australian team has also adopted a cautious stance on the fitness of fast bowler Jason Gillespie, who has been given until the morning of the Test to prove he can last the five days of the Adelaide match.

Gillespie had been troubled by calf muscle soreness before the Ashes series and a decision on whether he plays in his hometown Test will be made between him and team physio Errol Alcott.

Australia (likely) - Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Steve Waugh (captain), Darren Lehmann, Adam Gilchrist, Shane Warne, Jason Gillespie, Andy Bichel, Glenn McGrath, Brett Lee (12th man).

England (likely) - Marcus Trescothick, Michael Vaughan, Mark Butcher, Nasser Hussain (captain), John Crawley or Robert Key, Alec Stewart, Craig White, Richard Dawson, Andrew Caddick, Matthew Hoggard, Alex Tudor.