 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Injured Clarke unable to bat on Day 4
Australia received a severe jolt in their second innings when captain Michael Clarke was unable to bat after an injury on day four of the third Test in Mohali on Sunday.
- Kumar's triple strike put India on top
Earlier on Sunday, Clarke went off the field a couple of times during India's first innings, to tend to an injury suffered in the warm-up session in the morning before the start of play on Day 4.
Clarke, who batted at No. 3 in the first innings and was out for a first ball duck, didn't come out to bat as Phil Hughes batted at that spot. Hughes was followed by Steven Smith and night-watchman Nathan Lyon was sent in at No. 5 towards the end.
"Michael Clarke injured his back in the warm-up this morning. He will undergo further treatment overnight and we will assess that to see how it settles in the morning to determine when he is able to bat tomorrow," Australian team physio Alex Kontouris said.
Hughes made the most of batting at No 3 spot
Australia are in deep trouble after having been reduced to 75 for three in their second innings with 16 runs needed to avoid an innings defeat.
The visitors will hope that Clarke recovers in time and play a big knock to help at least salvage a draw.
He is Australia's leading run-scorer in this series and is the only batsman from their team to hit a hundred.
Replacing Clarke at No 3 in the batting order, Hughes finally got some runs as he stroked his way to a scratchy innings of 53 inclusive of nine boundaries and a six to keep his team afloat.
India lead the four-match series 2-0 and Australia need to win this Test to keep their hopes alive in the series.