LONDON: As Australia and England are ready to take on each other in the Lord’s Test, Aussies wicket-keeper cum batsman Brad Haddin will miss the match while Watson also expected to stay on bench after poor Cardiff Test.
The host are leading the five-match Ashes series while the visitors are facing some fitness issues just at the beginning of the series.
Mitchell Strac is facing ankle issue ahead of big game while Watson’s poor form would lead to miss the Lord’s Test.
Australia’s selectors have chosen to drop the allrounder Shane Watson after also learning that the wicketkeeper Brad Haddin will miss the second Ashes Test at Lord’s for personal reasons.
Peter Nevill, 29, will make his Test debut in Haddin’s absence while Mitchell Marsh is set for inclusion at Watson’s expense.
The decision on Watson was brought about by his poor first Test at Cardiff and a recent run of indifferent performances in the long form of the game.
He has not made a century since the Perth Test in December 2013, and has also failed to make a significant enough impact with the ball to merit a place. In Cardiff Watson was twice out lbw, a vivid reminder of an enduring blind spot in his technique.
Marsh has meanwhile shown signs of significant progress, doubling his tally of first-class centuries with a pair of bold innings during the tour warm-up fixtures against Kent and Essex while also demonstrating a more mature approach off the field.
Marsh has played four Tests for Australia, but this is the first time he has been chosen directly ahead of Watson.
