Elbow blow could hurt Wade’s selection chances

CANTERBURY, England: Matthew Wade’s bid to earn a place in Australia’s squad for the Ashes series suffered a blow when he was injured during the third day of the match between Australian XI and England Lions here on Tuesday.

A serious hit on the right arm from the England Lions captain Lewis Gregory, very nearly on the point of the elbow, forced Wade to retire hurt and be sent for an X-ray on day three of a game in which the Australians have steadily taken control.

Play was stopped for several minutes as Wade struggled in obvious pain, and though he played out a few more balls before tea, he did not re-emerge in the evening session. “Matthew went for a precautionary X-ray after taking a blow to his right elbow,” the team doctor John Orchard said. “The X-ray came back clear but he’s probably suffering from a bruised nerve from the impact and his grip strength is impaired. He’ll be reassessed in the morning.”