Border Gavaskar Trophy: Hazlewood injured or sidelined? Travis Head clarifies

Australia went down against India in the opening Test of the five-match Border Gavaskar Trophy on home soil. The camp, however, didn’t go without some noise. Following the 295-run defeat against the Jasprit Bumrah-led side, seamer Josh Hazlewood made a polarized statement that raised many eyebrows. Hazlewood was the highest wicket-taker in the match, picking up a four-fer in the first innings when India were bundled out for just 150. Despite the edge gained in the first innings, Australia fumbled their chances as Jasprit Bumrah wreaked havoc on the batting lineup. Now, as Hazlewood has been ruled out of the second Test due to an "injury," speculations are rife about whether there is indeed a niggle or a rift within the Australian camp.

Travis Head clears the air about Hazlewood's exclusion for the Adelaide Test in Border Gavaskar Trophy

Hosting India for the Border Gavaskar Trophy, Australia looked keen on exploiting the low spirits of the visitors after their 0-3 defeat against New Zealand at home. However, the plans of the hosts didn’t materialize as India redeemed their form to win the opening Test in Perth. With Jasprit Bumrah emerging as the top performer for the visitors, India became the first team to beat Australia at the Optus Stadium. Australia has not claimed the Border Gavaskar Trophy for a decade now. Moreover, their campaign received an early blow as the visitors clinched a 1-0 lead in Perth.

When queried about the team’s performance after the loss, Josh Hazlewood came up with a shocking stance. The senior bowler shifted the onus onto the batters as he explained how he’s trying to relax following the match. While Australian batters, including Marnus Labuschagne and Steve Smith, disappointed with the bat, it is rarely seen in the sport that a player divides the team into two when reasoning for a defeat.

"You probably have to ask one of the batters that question probably. I am sort of relaxing and trying to get a bit of treatment, and I am looking mostly to the next Test," Hazlewood said after the loss.

As the focus shifted to the Adelaide Test, the news of Josh Hazlewood being injured emerged. The seamer was ruled out of the second match due to a strain in his left side. However, the update about his unavailability was received by fans as a potential rift in the camp masked by an injury. In his recent interaction, Australian batter Travis Head cleared the air about the rumored tussle in the Australian dressing room. In his statement, Head accepted the responsibility that the batters need to bear, terming cricket as an "individualized" sport.

"It's a very individualized sport. So batters want to hold our own. We know the bowl. We know how good our bowlers have been for us in the past, and they've got us out of trouble a lot. So, as a batting group, we know that if we can get enough runs on the ball, we put ourselves in a great position. So as a batter myself, I try to hold a lot of pride in what I do and knowing that if I can set it up for the big boys, that they can knock it down for us," he added.

Rift or not, Hazlewood is sure to miss the pink-ball Test against India in Adelaide. In his absence, Australia called up Sean Abbott and Brendan Hoggett to the squad. However, the team is likely to go with Scott Boland as Hazlewood’s replacement in the Playing XI. The day-night match is scheduled to start on December 6, with India’s skipper Rohit Sharma joining the squad for the clash. Moreover, Shubman Gill, who hit a half-century in the practice game against the PM XI upon his recovery from a thumb injury, looks fit to enter the Indian Playing XI in Adelaide.