Australia’s pace attack suffers a blow as fast bowler Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the remainder of Ashes 2025 following injury setbacks. Hazlewood, who missed the opening two Tests, struggled to recover from lingering hamstring and Achilles issues, forcing him to sit out the remaining three matches.
“Really flat for him. A couple of setbacks that we didn’t see coming,” said Australia coach Andrew McDonald. “We thought he’d play a huge role in this series, so it’s disappointing he won’t get the chance.”
Hazlewood now shifts focus to the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 in India and Sri Lanka, starting February, aiming for full fitness ahead of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Pat Cummins, who has been sidelined since July due to a lower back injury, is on course to return as captain for the third Test in Adelaide. McDonald confirmed that Cummins had completed a match-like workload in training and is fully prepared to resume leadership of Australia’s bowling attack.
“This is something we’ve done with Pat before during long layoffs—rebuilding his body carefully,” McDonald added. “He simulated multiple match-like spells in training, so he should be ready for the challenge.”
Mitchell Starc, Australia’s leading wicket-taker in the series with 18 scalps from the first two Tests, will also be fit for Adelaide after managing a minor left-side niggle at the Gabba.
With Hazlewood out, the onus will fall on Starc, Cummins, and the rest of the Aussie pace attack to secure a series-clinching victory in Adelaide.
