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Marsh reacts after he was hit in the groin during training on Sunday.Credit: Getty Images
Mitch Marsh suffered testicular bleeding after he was hit on the box by a “wanger” throwdown from Australian assistant coach Matthew Wade on Sunday, leading to Steve Smith’s summons to join the Twenty20 World Cup squad in Colombo.
Marsh suffered what was initially thought to be a fairly typical blow to the groin during a net session in the days leading up to the first cup game against Ireland.
But when his discomfort lingered longer than the usual period in which teammates often struggle to hide their mirth, scans showed the consequences.
That was enough to get Smith booked on a plane from Adelaide, where he took part in Wednesday’s LIV Golf pro-am at Grange alongside the likes of Cameron Smith and Elvis Smylie, to join the team on standby in Sri Lanka.
“He’s been a little bit sore over the last few days, so poor bugger, you don’t envy a man in that position,” Nathan Ellis said of Marsh.
“We sort of got an inkling probably yesterday and it sort of played out today, so never a great scenario for the team when you lose a captain, but also for the person who goes to bed last night thinking they’re not playing and then has to come in.
“But in terms of disruption with the team, we’ve got the easiest, most easy-going group in the world. Travis Head stepped in as captain and his heart rate probably doesn’t get above 25 at the best of times. So yeah, thankfully, obviously, we all want Mitchie there, and we love Mitchie leading us. But yeah, it wasn’t spoken about too much, and we just tried to hit the ground running.”
Marsh watched the opening game against Ireland from the team’s viewing area, and is expected to be fit at some stage to resume in the tournament.
But he is not the only way by which Smith can come into the squad.
After Josh Hazlewood was ruled out of taking part, Sean Abbott was flown over to Sri Lanka but is yet to be formally added to the 15.
Steve Smith played golf with Cameron Smith (right) in the LIV Golf pro-am in Adelaide on Wednesday.Credit: Getty Images
Should the selectors rule that they have sufficient pace bowling cover in the form of Xavier Bartlett, Ellis, Ben Dwarshuis and all-rounder Cameron Green, then the pathway is open for Smith to be called in as Hazlewood’s replacement.
That would add considerably to Australia’s batting options which, in the absence of Marsh and Tim David (who is in the final stages of his recuperation from a hamstring injury) on Wednesday, looked rather thin.
Matt Renshaw and Marcus Stoinis were compelled to bat with considerable restraint through the middle overs against Ireland because the fall of Australia’s fifth wicket would have brought tyro Cooper Connolly and the bowlers to the crease.
In recent years, Australia have benefited often from depth in their batting. Smith’s arrival in Sri Lanka will allow that to again be the case even if Marsh is ultimately proven fit to lead the team later on in the cup.
“We actually haven’t played a game with him in a long time for Australia. He’s obviously a gun. He’s one of the world’s best,” Ellis said of Smith.
“But yeah, mate, we’ve had 18 months and about 20 T20 games leading up to this where we’ve had a top order who have absolutely brained it.
“There’s obviously a lot of noise around Steve Smith scoring runs in the BBL. But our top order is world-class.
“Obviously, we’re missing Marsh today. And you throw up a player like Josh Inglis So yeah, it’s a tricky one. It’s always going to be tricky when you’ve got so many good talents and top order batters, but it’s hard to squeeze into that top.”
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