Australia’s star spinner Nathan Lyon recently sustained a calf injury while fielding on Day 2 of the second Ashes 2023 Test at Lord’s.
Lyon immediately left the field following the injury and was later seen walking with crutches the next day. However, he came out to bat for the Australian side in their second innings despite the injury and was widely appreciated for his commitment towards the game.
Although Australia emerged victorious in the Test by 43 runs, Lyon was ruled out of the remaining Ashes 2023 series due to a calf tear. The 35-year-old didn’t bowl a single over during the fourth innings of the second Test.
It would be the first time since 100 Tests that Australia will take the field without Lyon in the longest format. The off-spinner recently became the first bowler in cricketing history to feature in 100 consecutive Test matches.
The Australian team will most likely go with Todd Murphy as Lyon’s replacement in the upcoming fixture at Headingley. Australia’s head coach Andrew McDonald hinted the same to the media.
“Todd is pretty well placed. We like to have a spinner in our attack, it’s a different balance. As you saw (at Lord’s), at certain times, we had to do it differently without Nathan Lyon down the other end, which we’ve been so used to. At times it looked a bit chaotic. We do like to have that spin option in the attack,” McDonald told the press.
Speaking of Murphy, the 22-year-old gained recognition after his sensational performance against India in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2023. Murphy bagged 14 scalps in four Tests against India on the tour. Meanwhile, his first-class tally of wickets reads 43.
With the win in the Lord’s Test, Australia are now just one victory away from retaining the Ashes urn. The visitors currently lead the five-match series (2-0) and will next face England at Headingley from July 6.
