Picture Credit: Twitter
In a big news ahead of the Ashes series, Australian opener Will Pucovski has been ruled out of the opening Test match of the marquee series scheduled to begin on December 8. The 23-year-old was already set to miss Victoria's next Sheffield Shield encounter.
Notably, Pucovski has suffered a few concussions already in his young career. Talking about his health, Victoria Head Coach Chris Rogers said that it is a setback for him as well as Australia and the right-handed batter is unlikely to feature in the opening Ashes Test.
It was Rogers himself who had said that Pucovski has not yet recovered completely to feature in the Sheffield Shield competition. It was also revealed that only after consultation with the medical team and selectors that the youngster has been asked to rest and recover before making a comeback.
It’s unlikely Pucovski will play in the first Test: Chris Rogers
"It’s no doubt a setback. I’d say now it’s unlikely he will play in the first Test. He hasn’t quite recovered as well as hoped to play in this (Shield) game from the concussion. So in discussions with the medical team and the national selectors, it was felt we give him a bit more time before we select him to play for Victoria," Rogers said according to The West Australian.
Rogers also felt that even Pucovski could be irked at the turn of events which has prevented him from being back to competitive cricket for 7 months now. He also acknowledged that it could be tough for him to walk straight out of recovery and perform well.
The decision is to look after him and allow Pucovski a bit more time
"No doubt there’s a lot of frustration for him, he wants to be playing. He hasn’t played for seven months and to walk straight back into the cauldron and have to perform against very good opposition, that is going to be really difficult," Rogers stated.
"The decision is to look after him and allow him a bit more time to prepare in the right way rather than rush him into matches that are going to have a lot of intensity and a lot of scrutiny for him," he added.
Pucovski's only Test match so far came against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground in January this year.