Alyssa Healy, the captain of Australia, was ruled out of the first Twenty20 International due to a “stress response” in her foot on the same side as the one she suffered at the T20 World Cup last year, making her a serious question for the rest of the Ashes series.
While Georgia Voll covered the top-order absence and Beth Mooney took wickets, Tahlia McGrath led Australia in their attempt to take an 8-0 lead and keep the Ashes in Sydney.
Ash Gardner, an all-rounder, was out due to a calf injury, which presented another challenge for Australia. Prior to the second Twenty20 International in Canberra, she will undergo another evaluation.
Shawn Flegler, the head of high performance, told Fox Cricket that Alyssa had a stress reaction in her foot. “Before calling her, we will attempt to obtain a bit more information. For Alyssa, this is a major call. as well as the test captain.
“Tomorrow morning is our selector’s meeting. We’ll have to wait and see. We will not jump right in. The Test match is still around a week away.
Healy’s WBBL was cut short by a knee issue after she recovered from the World Cup plantar fascia injury. She missed the previous home series against India and only participated as a batter in the ODIs against New Zealand in December.
For the three ODIs against England that are scheduled to take place in six days, she went back to keeping responsibilities. The T20I series has a busy schedule as well, with matches in Adelaide on January 25 and Canberra on January 23.
Healy’s ability to handle the effort of a Test match, particularly as a wicketkeeper, will be seriously questioned even if she can participate in either of them.
