Australian batsman Shaun Marsh is racing time to be fit for the second Test against South Africa starting in Johannesburg next Thursday.
Suffering severe back stiffness, the 28-year-old will receive around-the-clock treatment from team physio Alex Kountouris in a bid to play at The Wanderers.
Marsh's back seized up late in his first innings of 44 on Wednesday and by the next morning he could barely walk and was unable to take his place in the field.
Captain Michael Clarke did not want to bat Marsh in his team's second innings but the Western Australian trudged out to the middle when his side was in dire straits at 8 for 21.
He was in obvious pain on his walk to the crease and two balls later he became the fifth second-innings wicket for debutant Vernon Philander, who has match figures of 8 for 78.
Marsh will continue with treatment and medication but Kountouris said the Western Australian's availability will not be clear until next week.
"You usually have to wait the first couple of days once the original spasm and the acuteness of the injury settles down," Kountouris said.
"Once that settles down I'll have a better idea of whether he's more likely to get better in the short term or the longer term.
"He's had this 12 months ago and got better reasonably quickly but every occasion is different.
"We've got plenty of days until the next game so we'll just have to wait and see. We'll probably have a better idea once we get to Johannesburg."
Clarke has suffered from his fair share of back problems and said he will consider the opinions of Kountouris and Marsh before deciding whether his new number three will play at The Wanderers.
Kountouris said discomfort was the only worry for Marsh batting on Thursday and he would not have allowed him to go out if he was likely to be risking long-term injury.
When he arrived at the wicket, Australia was in danger of recording the lowest total ever in Test cricket and Clarke said he could not stop the left-hander from soldiering on.
"You try and tell Shaun Marsh he's not going out there to bat for his country," said Clarke, who is optimistic about his top-order star's recovery.
"I'm confident if he does get it right (treatment) in this period before the second Test, he'll be fine to play.
"He's a big player for us ... and I want to make sure we make the right decision."
AAP
No comments:
Post a Comment