Lee, Hopes ruled out of Delhi ODI

New Delhi: Injuries continue to torment Australian camp. Just ahead of the third ODI at Delhi’s Kotla stadium, comes the news that strike bowler Brett Lee and all-rounder James Hopes have been ruled out, as they have not recovered sufficiently from their injuries. 

Lee picked up his elbow injury during the first ODI at Vadodara. The swelling on his elbow continues to trouble the bowler and rendered him unfit for the match. His absence will be a major blow to the Aussie bowling attack, which was taken to the cleaners by the Indian batsmen in the second ODI at Nagpur. The trio of Mitchell Johnson, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle had conceded 213 runs in the 30 overs they had bowled collectively. 

On the other hand, James Hopes, who had suffered a hamstring injury, also during the Vadodara match, too has not recovered. Both Lee and Hopes were expected to recover for the Delhi match, but despite the best efforts of Aussie physiotherapist Alex Kontouris, the injuries did not heal in time. 

However, there is some good news for Team Australia. Wicket keeper Graham Manou will join the team in time for the Kotla match. He will be replacing Tim Paine, who had broken his finger while keeping wickets to Siddle during the Nagpur match.