Due to a calf injury, Australia offspinner Nathan Lyon will miss the rest of the Ashes 2023. On the second day of the Lord’s Test, the 35-year-old sustained the injury, which he termed as a “decent tear,” while fielding. After that, he didn’t bowl in the game but limped out to bat and added 15 runs to Mitchell Starc’s final wicket in the second innings. Australia eventually went on to win the Test by 43 runs, taking a 2-0 series lead.
Lyon had, incidentally, played 100 consecutive innings for Australia in this second Test of the series. Alastair Cook, Allan Border, Mark Waugh, Sunil Gavaskar, and Brendon McCullum were the only five players before him to accomplish this accomplishment, which is a credit to a player’s consistency and physical preparedness.
Australia will undoubtedly add offspinner Todd Murphy to the starting XI for the Headingley Test, which begins on Thursday (July 6), to fill in for Lyon. Earlier this year, the 22-year-old experienced a breakthrough debut tour of India, capturing 14 wickets from four Test matches at an average of 25.21. This also included a seven-fer in his Nagpur debut.
David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Mitchell Marsh, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Todd Murphy, Scott Boland, Michael Neser, and Jimmy Peirson make up the Australian team for the test in Leeds.
A statement of confidence in the team’s batting and in opener David Warner, who made a crucial 66 on the first day of the Lord’s Test, should be seen in Australia’s decision to release backup batsman Matt Renshaw from the squad for the third Test. Renshaw, however, will continue to be on standby in the UK. Michael Neser, one of the bowlers, continues to be a member of the 16-person team.