Australia Sweats Over Mitchell Marsh Fitness As Emergency Call Brings Back Steve Smith

Advertisment

Australia’s T20 World Cup plans have taken a massive hit. Captain Mitchell Marsh is officially out of the opening game against Ireland. He took a heavy blow to the groin during a practice session this week. Medical scans confirmed internal testicular bleeding. This injury is causing him huge pain and making it very hard to move. Cricket Australia says he needs total rest and rehab now. There is no clear date for when he might be back on the field. This news broke just before the coin toss in Colombo.

The team has called in Steve Smith as an emergency backup. Smith was playing a golf event in Adelaide when he got the SOS call. He is now flying to Sri Lanka to join the squad. He was not in the original 15-man list but now he is the main cover. Travis Head took over as skipper for the Ireland match. The Aussies are already missing big stars like Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood due to back and leg issues. Mitchell Starc is also gone after retiring from the format. The squad is so thin they only had twelve fit players for the first match.

Despite the chaos Australia managed to beat Ireland by 67 runs. Marcus Stoinis hit 45 to help them reach 182. Then Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa took four wickets each to seal the win. But everyone is worried about Marsh’s long-term health. He is their best power hitter and their leader. If he stays out for the whole tournament it could ruin their title hopes.

Advertisment

The next match is against Zimbabwe this Friday. That gives Marsh almost no time to heal up. The medical team is watching him but the situation is grim. Smith will have to find his batting form quickly after being away from T20s for a while. Australia is in survival mode as the injury list keeps getting longer.