Boland firms with Hazlewood out of Test Championship amid warm-up debate

Scott Boland appears set to continue his remarkable Test career after Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of the World Test Championship final against India beginning at the Oval on Wednesday.

While Michael Neser has been added to the 15-man squad after playing county cricket for Glamorgan, Boland is the fourth fast bowler in the original touring party. The 34-year-old has 28 wickets in seven Tests at an average of just 13.

Scott Boland takes a wicket against South Africa at the MCG last year.Credit: Getty

England were dealt their own Ashes injury blow late on Sunday when spinner Jack Leach was ruled out of the series with a lower back stress fracture.

An England statement said Leach developed symptoms during last week’s 10-wicket win over Ireland at Lord’s and a scan on the weekend confirmed the bowler has a stress fracture in the lumbar region of the spine.

A replacement has not yet been named.

Australian selectors, meanwhile, believe Hazlewood will be fit for the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston starting on June 16 but want him to have more training after recovering from a slight side niggle suffered in the IPL.

Josh Hazlewood missed all four Tests against India due to an Achilles injury.Credit: AP

Chair of selectors George Bailey claimed Hazlewood was “very, very close” to being available for the WTC final.

“We are cognisant that our upcoming schedule means this is not a one-off Test match of us,” Bailey said.

“Michael’s county form has been strong and knowing that he was going to be close by allowed for him to keep playing and for us to be able to call on him. He is a great strength to have as part of the fast bowling group.

“This will give Josh an ideal preparation leading into Edgbaston. With six Test matches in a little over seven weeks we will need all of our fast bowling assets.”

Amid the cluttered schedule Australian captain Pat Cummins defended the decision to skip warm-up matches ahead of the WTC final and Ashes as former skipper Allan Border questioned the team’s plans ahead of a bumper tour of England.

Cummins, who has been doing pre-season training at NSW’s Cricket Central since April with fellow quicks Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood before a pre-tour camp at the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane, claimed there was no time for tour matches.

“It’s the nature of the schedule,” Cummins told this masthead. “But we feel really good. We’ve had a good prep up in Brisbane for a few days.

Mitch Starc has a laugh at training.

“It’s a pretty busy couple of months coming up and six Tests in two months is really hectic. You’d rather be fresh at the end of it than worn out.

“We’ve got a pretty experienced squad and have all played in England before, so we’ll be as ready as we’ll ever be.”

The Australians may have created history on this tour before picking up a bat or ball in anger, choosing the exclusive Formby Hall Golf Resort and Spa to begin the most important winter of cricket many of them will play.

While the Australians are now ensconced at Beckham, Kent’s second county ground Warner and Cummins believe the modern era simply doesn’t allow for tour matches.

The Australian cricket squad training at Formby Cricket Club.

However, Border is baffled how the Australians can arrive just 10 days before the first Test without a single tour match, or in the case of young all-rounder Cameron Green, just seven days after a brief return home to Perth following the IPL.

“I don’t care how hard you work in the nets, nothing replaces game time,” Border told Fox Cricket.

“I’m really surprised we’re just allowing the Ashes tour to be so condensed with no cricket between the games, but that’s the way it is.”

When Border and his team arrived in London 30 years ago they played eight lead-up matches and three one-day internationals ahead of their first Test.

Allan Border during the 1993 Ashes tour.

Warner claims tour matches could be “a waste of time”, with the pitch conditions often significantly different from those produced for a Test.

“We’re playing so much cricket these days with so many people coming off different kinds of cricket or no cricket and getting their workloads up in their own way under supervision,” Warner said.

“I think when you’ve played a long time, another warm-up game isn’t going to get you ready. Why wouldn’t we just have a four-day session against our bowlers, and they can bowl the whole day and I can bat against the best bowlers in the world. It just makes sense.

“From our perspective, you only need two good hitouts then a couple of training sessions in and around that. If you have a warm-up game but you nick off, then you’re standing around for six hours.”

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